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CNITED STATES OP AMERICA. 



^^ THE TEACHERS' BLACKSTONEr 

THE LIFE AND WORK 



OF 

DAVID P. PAGE, 



INCLUDING 



THE THEORY AND PRACTICE OF TEACHING, 

THE MUTUAL DUTIES OF PARENTS AND TEACHERS, 

AND ''THE SCHOOLMASTER," A DIALOGUE. 



TO WHICH HAVE BEEN ADDED 



Extracts from the circular issued by the Bureau of Education, showing the Legal 
Status of the Teacher ; also Reading Outlines as an Aid to the System- 
atic Study of the Work, altogether constituting a complete 
Teachei^s Manual and Guide. 



EDITED BY 

J. M. GKEENWOOD, 

Superintendent City Schools, Kansas City, Mo. 



CHICAGO 

The Werner Company 
1893 



%Cj%l'^^ 



I 






Copyright, 1893. 

The Werner Company, 

Chicago. 



PEEFAOE. 



Many a meritorious book has failed to find readers by reason 
of a toilsome preface. If the following volume meets a similar 
fate, whatever its merits, it shall lac^k a like excuse. 

This work has had its origin in a desire to contribute some- 
thing toward elevating an important and rising profession. Its 
matter comprises the substance of a part of the course of lectures 
addressed to the classes of the Institution under my charge, dur- 
ing the past two years. Those lectures, unwritten at first, were 
delivered in a familiar, colloquial style,— their main object being 
the inculcation of such practical 'views as would best promote 
the improvement of the teacher. In writing the matter out for 
the press, the same style, to considerable extent, has been 
retained,— as I have written with an aim at usefulness rather 
than rhetorical effect. 

If the term theory in the title suggests to any mind the bad 
sense sometimes conveyed by that word, 1 would simply say, that 
I have not been dealing in the speculative dreams of the closet, 
but in convictions derived from the realities of the schoolroom 
during some twenty years of actual service as a teacher. Theory 
may justly mean the science distinguished from the art of teach- 
ing,— but as in practice these should never be divorced, so in the 
following chapters I have endeavored constantly to illustrate the 
one by the other. 

If life should be spared and other circumstances should war- 
rant the undertaking, perhaps a further course comprising the 
Details of Teaching may, at some future time, assume a similar 
form to complete my original design. 

State Normal School, ) rk -d t) 

Albany, N. Y., January 1, 1847.f ^^^™ ^- ^^^^• 

(3) 



EDITOE^S PREFACE. 



It is with pleasure that a complete edition of David Page's 
writiDgs is now offered to the public. Two interesting chapters— 
''The Mutual Duties of Parents and Teachers," and "The School- 
master" — a dialogue — are both included in the present work. 

Nearly forty-seven jearn ago, "Theory and Practice of Teach- 
ing" was issued, and no other work by an American author has 
exerted so great an influence in shaping the methods of teaching 
and inspiring the teachers of this country with a more zealous 
enthusiasm than the burning words wTitten bj'' this earnest man. 
His grasp of the subject would not be called comprehensive ; but 
it was intense, and ran in deep channels close to the every day life 
of teacher, parent, child, and home. He indulged in no farfetched 
or vague notions of philosophy, but he struck errors in teaching 
and in management with fierce and telling blows. He wrote in 
vigorous English, and no commentator can make plainer the 
truths he spoke. He saw clearly the glaring faults in the school- 
room, and he pointed them out so unmistakably that a child 
even can see them. He analyzed more minutely the defects and 
imperfections of poor teaching than any other educator of his 
time, and no other has ever surpassed him in the touching plea 
for the earnest and conscientious teacher which he made in the 
chapter on the " Mutual Duties of Teachers and Parents." 

The writer's first inspiration to teach came from^ reading a 
borrowed copy of " Theory and Practice" in 1860, and he is more 
indebted to that little volume for an ardent desire to help others 
in their work than to the hundreds of other books on education 
read since then. This, no doubt, is the verdict of thousands of 
our most successful teachers to-day. An inspiring book is always 

(5) 



6 EDITOR'S PREFACE. 

a good book and a suggestive one. "Theory and Practice "is 
pre-eminently so. It speaks from the heart to the heart. 

In a few instances the original text has been changed, and 
other matter, more in accordance with the present advanced 
state of educational thought, substituted. In the work of revis- 
ion important assistance has been rendered by Prof. Cyrus AV. 
Hodgin, Professor of History and Political Science in Earlham 
College, Indiana. The portions omitted, were not directly con- 
nected with the general tenor of the subject, but rather as digres- 
sions that could be omitted without impairing the unity of the 
work. 

The two new chapters, "The Schoolmaster" and "Duties of 
Teachers and Parents" are especially valuable features of the 
present edition, because of their intrinsic worth and the strong 
side lights they throw on the author's life and character. 

J. M. Greenwood. 
Kansas City, Mo., Judo 1, 1893. 



CONTENTS. 



CHAPTER I. 

PAGE 

The Spirit of the Teacher, 21 

• CHAPTER II. 

Responsibility of the Teacher, 25 

Section I.— The Neglected Tree, 25 

Section II.— Extent of Responsibility, 28 

Section III.— The Auburn Prison, 41 

CHAPTER III. 

Personal Habits of the Teacher, 45 

CHAPTER IV. 

Literary Qualifications of the Teacher, 52 

CHAPTER V. 

Right Views of Education, 66 

CHAPTER VI. 

Right Modes of Teaching, 74 

Section I.— Pouring-in Process, 75 

Section II.— Drawing-out Process, . . . . . .77 

Section III.— The More Excellent Way, 80 

Section IV.— Waking up Mind, 82 

Section V.— Remarks, 90 

CHAPTER VII. 

Conducting Recitations, 94 

(7) 



8 CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER VIII. 

PAGE 

Exciting Interest in Study, 107 

Section I.— Incentives— Emulation, 108 

Section II.— Prizes and Rewards, 112 

Section III.— Proper Incentives, 121 

CHAPTER IX. 

School Government, 127 

Section I.— Requisites in the Teacher for Government, . 127 
Section II.— Means of Securing Good Order, .... 134 
Section III.— Punishments— Improper— Proper, . . . 146 

Section IV.— Corporal Punishment, 158 

Section V.— Limitations and Suggestions, .... 167 

CHAPTER X. 



School Arrangements, .... 
Section I.— Plan of Day's Work, 
Section IL— Interruptions, . 
Section III. — Recesses, 
Section IV. — Assigning of Lessons, 
Section V. — Reviews, 



. 175 

. 179 

. 185 

. 188 

. 190 

. 193 

Section VI.— Examinations— Exhibitions— Celebrations, . 194 

CHAPTER XI. 

The Teacher's Relation to the Parents of his Pupils, . . 198 

CHAPTER XII. 
The Teacher's Care of his Health, 203 

CHAPTER XIII. 
The Teacher's Relation to his Profession, 212 

CHAPTER XIV. 
The Mutual Duties of Parents and Teachers, .... 229 

CHAPTER XV. 

Miscellaneous Suggestions, 247 

Section I.— Things to be Avoided, . . . • '. . 247 
Section II.— Things to be Performed, 257 



CONTENTS. 9 

CHAPTER XVI. 

PAGE 

The Rewards of the Teacher, 275 

CHAPTER XVII. 
The Schoolmaster— a Dialogue, 286 

CHAPTER XVIII. 
The Legal Status of the Teacher, 296 

CHAPTER XIX. 
Outlines of Theory and Practice of Teaching, .... 312 



LIFE OF DAVID PEEXmS PAGE. 



In 1826 a youth lay ill and helpless in a farmhouse in the village of 
Epping, New Hampsliire. He was a farmer's sou, sixteen years of age; 
his name, David Perkins Page. The father, a prosperous citizen of the 
middle class, was led by the fear of api)roaching bereavement to appre- 
ciate more than ever before the worth of his boy. He had planned for 
his son the life of a village farmer, and had inflexibly refused all appeals 
of the youth for an education such as would be required as a preparation 
for the profession of teaching. The boy approached near to the portals 
of the tomb, yet in his utter weakness clung to life and to the hopes he 
had cherished of active, beneficent work in the educational world. Lean- 
ing over the bedside of his apparently dying son, the father promised the 
boon so long denied. In the event of his recovery, David was to be sent 
to the Academy at Hampton to be trained (as he hoped) for a career in 
the higher walks of life. Recovery followed, and the farmer boy entered 
the Academy, where he soon achieved distinction for proficiency in his 
studies. 

The school in which young Page was enrolled enjoyed some celebrity 
in New Hampshire, yet was not to be ranked among the greater institu- 
tions of the State. In these days when better schools are everywhere 
accessible, the significance of this brief period in Mr. Page's career may 
not be adequately estimated. Farmers' sons were not as a rule enrolled 
in Academies, great or small. Then only the favored few enjoyed the 
privileges of institutions of a higher grade than the district schools. 

The slender, pale-faced boy of seventeen in homespun clothes of un- 
fashionable cut was not numbered among the select set of rich men's sons 
at the Academy. Doubtless, it was better so, for he possessed sufficient 
independence to disregard their rebuffs and their ridicule, and he was 
stimulated by their assumed superiority to assert his real worth in the 
field of fair competition which is offered in such an institution. So rapid 
was the student's progress that at the end of some months he was ena- 
bled to secure a teacher's license, and so turned teacher himself, in order 
to provide means for his further education. At the close of this first 
term in a district school he returned again to the Academy, where, in 
the following year, he made yet more rapid progress than before. 

Still, as the gem of its civic crown, 
Precious beyond the world's renown, 
His memory hallows the ancient town, 

(11) 



12 LIFE OF DAVID PERKINS PAGE. 

These verses relate to Whitefield, the eloquent divine, whose remains 
lie in Newburyport, Mass., 

Under the church of Federal street, 
Under the tread of its Sabbath- feet ; 

And true indeed has been the prophecy: 

Long shall the traveler strain his eye 
From the railroad car as it plunges by, 
And the vanishing town behind him search 
For the slender spire of the Whitefield Church. 

But it is of Page that the traveler of later years thinks as he gazes 
from the window of his coach upon the receding city. It is the beloved 
teacher, whose influence is still a vital, potent force in the educational 
world, whose memory is the gem of the civic crown of Newburyport. 

The city of Newburyport lies at the mouth of the spindle-turning 
Merrimac, upon a commodious harbor, at the entrance of which, — 

Low and long, with dwarf trees crowned, 
Plum Island lies like a whale aground, 
A stone's toss over the narrow sound. 

With the lights and shadows of this northeast corner of the Bay State 
the poets have been busy. Hannah F. Gould has sung of the Old Elm 
of Newbury, which grew from the twig that a lover i)lucked as a talisman, 
Whittier has written more than one charming "poem of place," relating 
to the vicinity; and indeed it might be difficult to find a more pictur- 
esque or engaging scene for poet or artist than is presented by the roll- 
ing hills of Newbury, in the changing glories of the seasons. 

Inland as far as the eye can go. 

The hills curve round like a bended bow ; 

******* 

And round and round, over valley and hill. 

Old roads winding as old roads will, 

Here to a ferry, and there to a mill. 

In old homestead scenes which gladden the heart of even the wayfarer 
with their suggestions of family history and of family reunions, every 
part of Massachusetts abounds, and none more than the thrifty valley 
of the Merrimac, where one sees: 

Glimpses of chimneys and gabled eaves. 
Through green elm arches and maple leaves. 
Old homesteads, sacred to all that can 

Gladden or sadden the heart of man,-- 
Over whose thresholds of oak and stone 
Life and death have come and gone ! 

There pictured tiles in the fireplace show, 
Great beams sag from the ceiling low. 
The dresser glitters with polished wares. 
The long clock ticks on the foot-worn stairs. 



LIFE OF DAVID PERKINS PAGE. 13 

Like all old settlements Newbury abounds in legends of the marvelous. 
One of these relates to the niythicaj double-headed snake, the amphis- 
bsena, concerning which the reverend pastor Christopher Zoppan wrote 
to that prince of marvel-mongers the reverend and learned Cotton 
Mather, to say: "Concerning ye amphisbaena, as soon as I received 
your commands, I made diligent inquiry. . . . He assured me yt had 
really two heads, one at each end." 

Cotton Mather came galloping down 
All the way to Newbury town, 
With his eyes agog and his ears set wide, * 
And his marvelous iukhorn at his side ; 
Stirring the while in the shallow pool 
Of his brains for the lore he learned at school, 
To garnish his story, with here a streak 
Of Latin, and there another of Greek ; 
And the tales that he heard and the notes that he took, 
Behold are they not in his Wonder-Book ? 

To this old seacoast town of Newbury came in the winter of '29, David 
Page, an enthusiastic young teacher of nineteen years, to take charge of 
a country district school. For his work he seemed well qualified, though 
the task was by no means light. Many a man has made a successful gov- 
ernor or general or financier who would have failed utterly in an attempt 
to govern the turbulent boys and to conciliate the warring factions of 
the mad world which often constitutes a school district in the pure dem- 
ocracy of a New England town (township). "Faculty" is the most 
essential element of success in Yankee land. "Faculty" the young 
teacher was found to possess in liberal measure. The school house was 
dingy and illy appointed, as were nearly all its kind. He filled it with the 
sunshine of ahappy temperament, and with the quick conceits of an inven- 
tive mind bent onmakinglabor light and wholesome. He boarded around 
among his patrons, and was subject to many petty inconveniences; but 
this enabled him to become acquainted with the home influences in his 
surroundings, and he was keen in his perception of the elements with 
which he had to deal. He became master of the situation. In his man- 
agement of his patrons he displayed no little ingenuity. Like the mari- 
ner who sails in the teeth of the wind by making the adverse forces of 
nature to serve him, young Page played off one force upon another; and 
thus where the sovereigns of the district differed, he demonstrated the 
necessity for acting independently upon his own judgment. 

The schoolhouse was by no means the schoolmaster's castle. It was 
liable to intrusion at all hours, and the intruders were not always affected 
with supersensitiveness as to the proprieties of the time and place. Saun- 
ders is bibulous, and destroys his own case, if, indeed, he has any case to 
destroy. Mr. LeCompte is certain that his son Jacques is a "sober" 



14 LIFE OF DA VID PERKINS PAGE. 

boy, not given to mischief; but he finds himself the victim of his son's 
pranks, and is highl}^ exasperated at being convinced of his error. Mr. 
Fosdick is certain that detention after school hours should be substi- 
tuted for corporal punishment, while 'Squire Snyder is equally certain 
that a castigation is the proper remedy for a pupil's delinquencies. 
O'Clary is rash and belligerent, but is defeated by the truthfulness of his 
boy. So the opposition falls to pieces by its own contradictions, and 
the shrewd and practical manager is left in undisputed possession of 
the field. 

The teacher's life was not exempt from drudgery. He performed much 
of the janitor service of the schoolhouse. He made and mended pens 
of goose quills. He probably made also the ink that was used. He 
"set" copies, not after any analytical system, but after his individual 
handwriting. 

Mr. Page was not a slave to the text-book, but used it with due regard 
for its limitations and imperfections. He sought to ''wake up mind," 
and the minds of his pupils were awakened to an intelligent observation 
and study of natural surroundings and familiar phenomena. 

The school term was short, for the necessary revenues were small and 
the larger boys could not be spared for long periods from the work of 
the farms. The young teacher, however, had come to stay. He opened 
a private school of five pupils. The enrollment grew, and the enterprise 
was soon placed upon a paying basis. The "itineracy" of the school- 
master, that baneful practice which rendered the teacher a homeless 
wanderer, was in his case abolished. A fixed residence is almost essential 
to professional advancement, and Page rose in reputation and in infiu- 
ence. Within two years he was chosen Associate Principal of the New- 
buryport High School, and assumed charge of the English Department, 
the Classical Department being committed to his colleague, Mr. Roger S. 
Howard. 

An opportunity had come for the development of Page's powers as 
an organizer. Two qualifications which he exhibited in a marked degree 
are noted by Horace Mann, viz.: the power to read character and act 
upon that knowledge, and a keen and clear analysis of principles in their 
relation to facts. These abilities enabled their possessor to govern and 
develop the tendencies of his pupils, and to impart to them clearly and 
forcibly that which he essayed to teach. 

An important element of Mr. Page's success was his manly insistence 
upon the duties and obligations of parents in the work of school educa- 
tion. He would not admit the one-sided view which regarded the teacher 
as solely responsible for the success or failure of his efforts. Mr. Page 
spoke plainly and fearlessly to the parents, and presented the subject to 
them in a new light. If there was to be criticism and exaction, it was 



LIFE OF DAVID PERKINS PAGE. 15 

time to recognize the fact that there were two parties to be heard from, 
and that fathers and mothers might find themselves thrown upon the 
defensive. It was co-operation that was needed, and a true sense of the 
reciprocal duties of patrons and teachers. The address which Mr. Page 
delivered upon this subject (see chapter XIV) was widely published 
throughout the State of Massachusetts, and was deemed by Horace 
Mann the ablest and most important educational paper that had yet 
appeared in America. At Newburyport Mr. Page remained for twelve 
years, building up a reputation that extended far over the republic; and 
when he left the high school it was only to enter upon a wider field of 
usefulness. 

In 1844 he was called to the principalship of the State Normal School 
of New York, which position he promptly accepted, though in so doing 
he entered upon a most difficult and seemingly doubtful undertaking. 

The charge of an established State institution of New York might be 
deemed a most desirable preferment, with an assured permanence of 
influence and honor. Such, however, was not the case in this instance. 
The Normal School at Albany was but an experiment at best, and had 
but a shadowy existence. It was secured largely through the exertions 
of the statesmanly Governor De Witt Clinton, whose name will be for- 
ever favorably associated with the Erie Canal, and whose ambition it 
was to advance the Empire State in material and educational develop- 
ment. Both the success of normal training by the State and the con- 
tinued existence of the Normal School might be deemed hig-hly problem- 
atical. The education of Mr. Page had been largely self-acquired, and he 
did not possess a normal school training; moreover, though he might 
conduct the institution with his characteristic efficiency of administra- 
tion, it might be abruptly terminated for political reasons. 

Having decided upon accepting the charge, Mr. Page bade adieu to 
his colleagues and pupils at Newburyport, and departed in December for 
his new field of labor. On his way he visited Horace Mann at Boston, 
and the two friends discussed the problems of the situation. The 
parting advice of the great Secretary lingered ever in the mind of the 
Principal : " Succeed or die." 

There are few people in Albany now who remember the quaint old 
Dutch-English-American town of half a century ago, with its ancient 
buildings and its peculiar customs dating from Colonial days. Albany 
was ambitious to become a city and to assume metropolitan airs. The 
corporation had donated the temporary use of the building for a 
Normal School, for as yet no permanent structure had been erected for 
the purpose. The appointments of the provisional building were simply 
ludicrous. Carpenters were hammering and sawing in the building when 
the school was opened on the 18th of December, 1844. Thirteen young 



16 LIFE OF DAVID PERKINS PAGE. 

men and sixteen young women entered the hall. The principal made a 
brief address, and breathed a fervent prayer, and the work began. 

What was to be the form of the work? All knew the purpose of the 
institution, but what should belts plan? With all his valuable experi- 
ence, Mr. Page was really at sea. He organized review classes in the 
common branches, and these were studied in careful detail, and illus- 
trated as he had often illustrated them in preceding years. For six 
weeks the work progressed. There were additions to the number of 
students, but it was apparent that the interest failed. With the subject- 
matter of the recitations the students generally had been long familiar. 
To many it seemed that they were wasting their time. Books on didac- 
tics there were few or none. Psychology as a rational basis for pedagog- 
ical investigation was scarcely considered in that day. The students 
required something to employ their energies and demanded higher 
studies. 

Then there was a new departure. Classes were formed in algebra and 
physiology, and the interest increased. The membership rose to ninety- 
eight ere the close of the term. But how did the study of the new 
branches differ from that which might be pursued in any academy? 
What was there of a distinctively normal or training character in it all? 

The new term opened in May, 18-4:5, and there were one hundred and 
seventy students enrolled. They required normal, and not merely aca- 
demical, instruction. 

Then there was another departure. The Principal was groping now 
in the right direction. The word "normal," as applied to schools for 
the training of teachers, would seem at first thought to be a misnomer, 
since it is derived from norma, arule, orlaw ; whereas the true normal idea 
discards empiricism and proceeds not by prescription, but is, in fact, the 
farthest removed from the bondage of rules. The term is appropriate, 
however, as referring to the great law of nature, which the true teacher 
seeks to discover and to apply in all his work. The true normal idea 
took deep hold of Mr. Page, and he reformed his lines upon the theory 
that teaching is not an exact science, but a field for the testing of experi- 
ence and of individual adaptation. 

A model school of children was organized, to be placed in charge of 
the various students in rotation. Mr. W. J. Phelps was appointed to 
teach for a period of two weeks. Then the Principal fell ill and was absent 
from the school, and the term of the trial teacher was indefinitely ex- 
tended. After six weeks Mr. Page returned to the normal school, still 
feeble, and perhaps somewhat discouraged. 

The model school was a gratifying success under the charge of Mr. 
Phelps. The rotation of teachers, however, proved a failure. Some of 
the teachers undid in a day the work of weeks. The children were demor- 



LIFE OF DAVID PERKINS PAGE. 17 

alized by the successive changes. While some of the young teachers 
succeeded fairly well, others were almost wholly unsuccessful, and the 
constant changes of methods and personalities rendered the work of 
little value as a whole. Then there was another departure. Mr. Phelps 
was appointed to take permanent charge of the model schoolroom. The 
normal students were to teach under the direction of a critic. The prob- 
lem of plan was now solved. 

With increased success of the Normal School came increased cares, 
troubles and dangers. The institution was caught in the swirl of politics, 
and even so sagacious a man as Silas Wright, that most noble prince of 
Barnburners, thought he must needs oppose the institution because, for- 
sooth, it had been championed by leading citizens of the Hunkers. The 
powerful influence of the Governor was, however, secured for the Normal 
School after a brief residence at Albany, where he had an opportunity of 
becoming acquainted with the merits of the institution and with its 
Principal. Detraction poured upon the school from the papers, whose 
editors refused to be convinced of its usefulness and worth. The Princi- 
pal himself was not exempt from the malice of partisanship and of 
professional jealousy. 

Mr. Page took no rest in vacations, but availed himself of the oppor- 
tunities which they afforded for visiting remote parts of the State and 
presenting to teachers' institutes and associations the claims of the insti- 
tution. The attendance grew from year to year, and ere three years had 
passed the school had gone beyond the experimental stage, and its per- 
manence as a State institution was almost universally recognized. For 
this all unite in ascribing the credit to the unwearied Principal. 

Mr. Page's health failed rapidly in the fall of 1847. A vacation tour 
was planned for him at the time of the holidays of the Christmas season, 
but he was too ill to leave his home. On New Year's day, 1848, he 
passed away. 

Mr. Page's literary labors were unceasing, and covered a long series 
of years ; yet, of all his productions, only one complete book w^as pub- 
lished, "The Theory and Practice of Teaching." This was the pioneer, 
as it is now the patriarch, of pedagogical literature in the United States. 
Singular as the fact may seem, none of the many later books on the same 
and kindred topics has displaced it in any perceptible measure. It was 
never so widely read as at the present time. Another work, and one which 
showed the analytical character of Mr. Page's mind, was his Normal 
Chart, which presented graphically the powers of the English letters, and 
was formerly in general use in the teaching of the principles of orthogra- 
phy. Doubtless it contributed largely to the purity of the American 
accent, though it has been superseded almost wholly in later years by 
the improved charts, spellers, and reading books, in which the subject 
T. P.— 2. 



18 LIFE OF DAVID PERKINS PAGE. 

now receives more adequate attention than formerly. It will be remem- 
bered, perhaps, that Pestalozzi analyzed the German scrij)t and taught 
the art of writing upon a rational basis; likewise, Mr. Page taught the 
art of pronunciation analytically, and aided in the dissemination of the 
principles enunciated by Noah AVebster in his now universally recognized 
Dictionary of the EngUsh Language. 

The attestations of popular grief at the death of Mr. Page were sur- 
prising, even to his friends. Numerous well written biographical sketches 
and laudatory notices appeared in the educational journals and in the 
secular press throughout the country. 

Barnard's Journal of Education, in a biography published at the 
time, says : 

"His life has been short as most men count time; he lacked six 
months of completing his thirty-eighth year when he was summoned to 
the better land, but if life be reckoned by what is accomplished then has 
his life been longer far than that of the antediluvian patriarchs. Of the 
hundreds of teachers who were under his care at Albany, there was not 
one who did not look up to him with admiration and love; not one who 
did not bear to some extent at least the impress of his character and 
influence. Men who were trained under him at Albany are occupying 
high positions in the cause of education in several of the Western States, 
and gifted women, who, under his teachings, were moved to consecrate 
themselves to the holy duty of training the young, are now at the head 
of seminaries and female schools of high order, extending his influence in 
widening circles over the boundless prairies of the west.'' 

Our brief narrative explains, we think clearly, what were the marked 
traits of Mr. Page's character— industry, perseverance, decision, energy, 
great executive ability, ready tact, and conscientious adherence to what 
he regarded his duty. But no language can describe the fascination of 
his manner, the attraction of his presence, his skill in what he was accus- 
tomed to call the drawing-out process, or his tact in making all his 
knowledge available. His familiar lectures to his pupils on subjects con- 
nected with the teacher's life and duties, could they be published, would 
form an invaluable hand-book for teachers. He possessed beyond most 
men the happy talent of always saying the right thing at the right time. 
In personal appearance Mr. Page was more than ordinarily prepossess- 
ing, of good height, and fine form, erect and dignified in manner, scrupu- 
lously neat in person and wise in address, he was a living model to his 
pupils of what a teacher should be. 

The remains of the great educator were borne by a funeral train to 
Newburyport, and deposited in the beautiful cemetery of the city. Sub- 
sequently the teachers of New York and Massachusetts by general con- 
tributions erected over his tomb a beautiful shaft of marble, which 



LIFE OF DA YID PERKINS PAGE. 19 

marks his last resting-place, and attests the love and reverence in which 
they had held him. 

Whittier has made much of a "prophecy" said to have been spoken 
by Samuel Sewall, two centuries ago, in which that ancient worthy, lean- 
ing upon his staff and looking down from the hills upon the scenes of his 
boyhood, likened the generations of men to the annual growths of corn 
in the meadows, declaring that while the salmon, sturgeon and pickerel 
should swim in the river, and the sea fowl should yearly return, and as 
long as Plum Island should stand to guard the harbor, no ear of the 
human grain should be lost, but rather be sown again in fields of light. 

Broad and catholic spirit to which the Quaker poet responds. The 
figure is suggestive of Mr. Page, who had ever before him the idea of 
sowing for the reaping by and by. 

The island still is purple with plums ; 
Up the river the salmon comes; 
The sturgeon leaps, and the wild fowl feeds 
On hillside berries and moorish seeds ; 
All the beautiful signs remain; 
From springtime sowing to autumn rain, 
The good man's vision returns again ! 
And let us hope, as well as we can, 
That the Silent Angel who garners man 
May find some grain, as of old he found. 
In the human cornfield, ripe and sound. 
And the Lord of the Harvest d^ign to own 
The precious seed by the fathers sown. 



Theory and Practice of Teaching 



CHAPTER I. 

SPIRIT OF THE TEACHER. 

Perhaps the very first question that the honest individual 
will ask himself, as he proposes to assume the teacher's office, or 
to enter upon a preparation for it, will be—" What manner of 
spirit am lof?'' No question can be more important. I would 
by no means undervalue that degree of natural talent— of men- 
tal power, which all justly consider so desirable in the candi- 
date for the teacher's office. But the true spirit of the teacher,— 
a spirit that seeks not alone pecuniary emolument, but desires 
to be in the highest degree useful to those who are to be taught ; 
a spirit that elevates above everything else the nature and capa- 
bilities of the human soul, and that trembles under the respon- 
sibility of attempting to be its educator; a spirit that looks 
upon gold as the contemptible dross of earth, when compared 
with that imperishable gem which is to be poHshed and brought 
out into heaven's light to shine forever; a spirit that scorns 
all the rewards of earth, and seeks that highest of all rewards, 
an approving conscience and an approving God ; a spirit that 
earnestly inquires what is right, and that dreads to do what is 
wrong; a spirit that can recognize and reverence the handiwork 
of God in every child, and that burns with the desire to be 
instrumental in training it to the highest attainment of which 
it is capable,— swc/i a spirit is the first thing to be sought by the 

(21) 



22 PAGE'S THEORY AND PRACTICE. 

teacher, and without it the highest talent cannot make him 
truly excellent in his profession. 

The candidate for the office of the teacher should look well to 
his motives. It is easy to enter upon the duties of the teacher 
without preparation; it is easy to do it without that lofty pur- 
pose which an enlightened conscience would ever demand; but 
it is not so easy to undo the mischief which a single mistake may 
produce in the mind of the child, at that tender period when 
mistakes are most likely to be made. 

Too many teachers are found in our schools without the spirit 
for their work which is here insisted on. They not only have not 
given attention to an3^ preparation for their work, but resort to 
it from motives of personal convenience, and in many instances 
from a consciousness of being unfit for everything else! In other 
professions this is not so. The lawyer is not admitted to the 
bar till he has pursued a course of thorough preparation, and 
even then but warily employed. The physician goes through his 
course of reading and his course of lectures, and often almost 
through a course of starvation in the country village where he 
first puts up his sign, before he is called in to heal the maladies 
of the body. It is long before he can inspire confidence enough 
in the people to be intrusted with their most difficult cases of 
ailing, and very likely the noon of life is passed before he can 
consider himself established. But it is not so with the teacher. 
He gains access to the sanctuary of mind without any difficult}^ 
and the most tender interests for both worlds are intrusted to 
his guidance, even when he makes pretension to no higher motive 
than that of filling up a few months of time not otherwise 
appropriated, and to no qualifications but those attained by 
accident. A late writer in the Journal of Education hardly over- 
states this matter :—" Every stripling who has passed four 
years within the walls of a college; every dissatisfied clerk, 
who has not ability enough to manage the trifling concerns of 
a common retail shop ; every young farmer who obtains in the 
winter a short vacation from the toils of summer,— in short, 
every young person who is conscious of his imbecility in other 



SPIRIT OF THE TEACHER. 23 

business, esteems himself fully competent to train the ignorance 
and weakness of infancy into all the virtue and power and 
wisdom of maturer years,— to form a creature, the frailest and' 
feeblest that Heaven has made, into the intelligent and fearless 
sovereign of the whole animated creation, the interpreter and 
adorer and almost- the representative of Divinity !" 

Many there are who enter upon the high emplo^^ment of teach- 
ing a common school as a secondary object. Perhaps they are 
students themselves in some higher institution, and resort to 
this as a temporary expedient for paying their board, while their 
chief object is, to pursue their own studies and thus keep pace 
with their classes. Some make it a stepping-stone to some- 
thing beyond, and, in their estimation, higher in the scale of 
respectability,— treating the employment, while in it, as irksome 
in the extreme, and never manifesting so much delight as w hen 
the hour arrives for the dismissal of their schools. Such have 
not the true spirit of the teacher; and if their labors are not 
entirely unprofitable, it only proves that children are sometimes 
submitted to imminent danger, but are still unaccountably 
preserved by the hand of Providence. 

The teacher should go to his duty full of his work. He should 
be impressed with its overwhelming importance. He should feel 
that his mistakes, though they may not speedily ruin him, may 
permanently injure his pupils. Nor is it enough that he shall 
say "I did it ignorantly." He has assumed to fill a place where 
ignorance itself is sin; and where indifference to the well-being of 
others is equivalent to willful homicide. He might as innocently 
assume to be the physician, and, without knowdng its effects, 
prescribe arsenic for the colic. Ignorance is not in such cases 
a valid excuse, because the assumption of the place implies a 
pretension to the requisite skill. Let the teacher, then, well con- 
sider what manner of spirit he is of. Let him come to this 
work only when he has carefully pondered its nature and its 
responsibilities, and after he has devoted his best powders to 
a thorough preparation of himself for its high duties. Above 
all, let him be sure that his motives on entering the school- 



24 PAGE'S THEORY AND PRACTICE. 

room are such as will be acceptable in the sight of God, when 
viewed by the light beaming out from his throne. 

Oh ! let not then unskillful hands attempt 

To play the harp whose tones, whose living tones 

Are left forever in the strings. Better far 

That heaven's lightnings blast his very soul, 

And sink it back to Chaos' lowest depths, 

Than knowingly, by word or deed, he send 

A blight upon the trusting mind of youth. 



CHAPTER 11. 

RESPONSIBILITY OF THE TEACHER. 



SECTION I.— A NEGLECTED PEAR TREE. 

Some years ago, while residing in the northeastern part of 
Massachusetts, I was the owner of a small garden. I had taken 
much pains to improve the condition and appearance of the 
place. A woodbine had been carefully trained upon the front 
of the little homestead; a fragrant honeysuckle, supported by 
a trellis, adorned the doorway; a moss rose, a flowering almond, 
and the lily of the valley, mingled their fragrance in the breath 
of morn,— and never, in my estimation at least, did the sun 
shine upon a lovelier, happier spot. The morning hour was 
spent in ''dressing and keeping" the garden. Its vines were 
daily watched and carefully trained ; its borders were free from 
weeds, and the plants expanded their leaves and opened their 
buds as if smiling at the approach of the morning sun. There 
were fruit trees, too, which had been brought from far, and so 
carefully nurtured, that they were covered with blossoms, filling 
the air with their fragrance and awakening the fondest hopes 
of an abundant harvest. 

In one corner of this miniature paradise, there was a hop- 
trellis; and, in the midst of a bed of tansy hard by, stood a 
small, knotty, crooked pear tree. It had stood there I know not 
how long. It was very diminutive in size; but like those cedars 
which one notices high up the mountain, just on the boundary 
between vegetation and eternal frost, it had every mark of the 
decrepitude of age. 

Why should this tree stand here so unsightly and unfruit- 
ful? Why had it escaped notice so long? Its bark had be- 
come bound and cracked ; its leaves were small and curled ; and 

(25) 



26 PAGE'S THLVBY A.XB PRACTICE. 

those, small as they were, were ready to be devoured by a host 
of caterpillars, whose pampered bodies were already grown to 
the length of an inch. The tendrils of the hop vine had crept 
abont its thorny limbs and were weighing down its growth, 
while the tansy at its roots drank up the refreshing dew and 
shut out the genial ray. It was a, neglected tree! 

"Why may not this tree be pruned?" No sooner said, than 
the small saw was taken from its place and the work was 
commenced. Commenced? It was hard to determine where to 
commence. Its knotty branches had grown thick and crooked, 
and there was scarcely space to get the saw between them. 
They all seemed to deserve amputation, but then the tree would 
have no top. This and that limb were lopped off as the case 
seemed to demand. The task was neither easy nor pleasant. 
Sometimes a violent stroke would bring down upon my own 
head a shower of the filthy caterpillars; again, the long-cher- 
ished garden-coat — threadbare and faded as it was— got caught, 
and before it could be disengaged, what an unsightly rent 
had been made! With pain I toiled on, for one of the unlucky 
thorns had pierced my thumb; and I might have been said to 
be working on the spur of the occasion ! 

The hop vine, however, was removed from its boughs, the 
tansy and weeds from its roots, the scales and moss from its 
bark. The thorns were carefully pared from its limbs, and the 
caterpillars were all shaken from its leaves. The mold was 
loosened and enriched, and the sun shined that day upon a long 
neglected, but now a promising tree. 

The time for grafting was not yet passed. One reputedly 
skilled in that art was called to put the new scion upon the oM 
stock. The work was readily undertaken and speedily accom- 
plished, and the assurance was given that the Bartlett Pear 
—that prince among the fruits of New England— would one day 
be gathered from my neglected tree ! 

With what interest I watched the buds of the scion, morning 
after morning, as the month grew warmer, and vegetation all 
around was "bursting into birth!" With what delight did I 



RESPOSSIBILITY OF THE TEACHER. 27 

greet the first opening of those buds, and how did I rejoice as 
the young shoots put forth and grew into a fresh green top! 
With tender solicitude I cherished this tree for two long sum- 
mers; and on the opening of the third, my heart was gladdened 
with the sight of its first fruit blossoms. With care were the 
weeds excluded, the caterpillars exterminated, the hop vine 
clipped, the bark rubbed and washed, the earth manured and 
watered. The time of fruit arrived. The Bartlett pear was 
offered in our market,— but my pears were not yet ripe! With 
anxious care they were watched till the frost bade the green 
leaves wither, and then they were carefully gathered and placed 
in the sunbeams within doors. They at length turned yellow, 
and looked fair to the sight and tempting to the taste; and a 
few friends, who had known their history, were invited to par- 
take of them. They were brought forward, carefully arranged 
in the best dish the humble domicile afforded, and formally 
introduced as the first fruits of the ^'neglected tree.'' What was 
my chagrin and mortification, after all my pains and solicitude, 
after all mj hopes and fond anticipations, to find they were 
miserable, tasteless— c/2o/:e pears ! 

This pear tree has put me upon thinking. It has suggested 
that there is such a thing as a moral garden, in which there may 
be fair flowers indeed, but also some neglected trees. The plants 
in this garden may suffer very much from neglect,— from neglect 
of the gardener. It is deplorable to see how many crooked, 
unseemly branches shoot forth from some of these young trees, 
which early might have been trained to grow straight and 
smooth by the hand of cultivation. Many a youth, running on 
in his own way, indulging in deception and profanity, yielding to 
temptation and overborne by evil influences, polluting by his 
example and wounding the hearts of his best friends as they 
yearn over him for good, has reminded me of my neglected tree, 
its caterpillars, its roughened bark, its hop vine, its tansy bed, 
its cruel, piercing thorns. And when I have seen such a youth 
brought under the influence of the educator, and have witnessed 
the progress he has made and the intellectual promise he has 



28 PAGE'S THEORY AND PRACTICE. 

given, I have also thought of my neglected tree. When, too, 1 
have followed him to the years of maturity, and have found, as I 
have too often found, that he brings not forth "the peaceable 
fruits of righteousness," but that he disappoints all the fondly- 
cherished hopes of his friends — perhaps of his own teachers, 
because the best principles were not engrafted upon him,— I again 
think of my neglected tree, and of the unskillful, perhaps dis- 
honest gardener, who acted as its responsible educator. 

From the above as a text, several inferences might be drawn. 
1. Education is necessary to develop the human soul. 2. Educa- 
tion should begin early. We have too many neglected trees. 
3. It should be right education. And, 4. The educator should 
be a safe and an honest man; else the education may be all 
wrong,— may be worse even than the neglect. 

But especially may we infer that,— 

SECTION II.— THE TEACHER IS RESPONSIBLE. 

It is the object of the following remarks feebly to illustrate 
the extent of the teacher's responsibility. It must all along be 
borne in mind that he is not alone responsible for the results of 
education. The parent has an overwhelming responsibility 
which he can never part with or transfer to another while he 
holds the relation of parent. 

But the teacher is responsible in a very high degree. An 
important interest is conmiitted to his charge whenever a human 
being is placed under his guidance. By taking the position of 
the teacher, all the responsibility of the relation is voluntarily 
assumed; and he is fearfully responsible, not only for what he 
does, but also for what he neglects to do. And it is a responsi- 
bility from which he cannot escape. Even though he may have 
thoughtlessly entered upon the relation of teacher, without a 
single glance at its obligations; or though, when reminded of 
them, he may laugh at the thought, and disclaim all idea of 
being thus seriously held to a fearful account, — yet still the 
responsibility is on him. Just as true as it is a great thing to 
guide the mind aright,— just as true as it is a deplorable, nay, 



RESPONSIBILITY OF THE TEACHER. 29 

fatal thing to lead it astray, so true is it that he who attempts 
the work, whether ignorant or skillful, whether thoughtless or 
serious, incurs all the responsibility of success or failure, — a 
responsibility he can never shake off as long as the human soul 
is immortal, and men are accountable for such consequences of 
their acts as are capable of being foreseen. 

I. The teacher is in a degree responsible for the bodily 
HEALTH of the child. It is well established that the founda- 
tion of many serious diseases is laid in the schoolroom. These 
diseases come sometimes from a neglect of exercise; sometimes 
from too long confinement in one position, or upon one study; 
sometimes from over-excitement and over-study; sometimes 
from breathing bad air; sometimes from being kept too warm 
or too cold. Now the teacher should be an intelligent physiolo- 
gist ; and from a knowledge of what the human system can bear 
and what it cannot, he is bound to be ever watchful to guard 
against all those abuses from which our children so often suffer. 
Especially should he be tremblingly alive to avert that excita- 
bility of the nervous system, the over-action of which is so 
fatal to the future happiness of the individual. And should 
he, by appealing to the most exciting motives, encourage the 
delicate child to press on to grasp those subjects which are 
too great for its comprehension, and allow it to neglect exercise 
in the open air in order to task its feverish brain in the crowded 
and badly-ventilated schoolroom; and then, in a few days, be 
called to look upon the languishing sufferer upon a bed of ex- 
haustion and pain— perhaps a bed of premature death,— could 
he say, "I am not responsible?" Parents and teachers often 
err in this. They are so eager to develop a precocious intellect, 
that they crush the casket in order to gratify a prurient desire to 
astonish the world with the brilliancy of the gem. Each is 
responsible for his share of this sin ; and the teacher especially, 
because by his education he should know^ better. 

II. The teacher is mainly responsible for the intellectual 
GROWTH of the child. This may be referred chiefly to the follow- 
ing heads. 



30 PAGE'S THEORY AND PRACTICE. 

1. The Order of Study.— There is a natural order in the educa- 
tion of the child. There is a corresponding natural order in the 
presentation of the different subjects of study, and in the unfold- 
ing of each separate subject. Each has a phase adapted to the 
promotion of some step in the child's intellectual development. 
All this the teacher should know. If he presents the subjects out 
of the proper order he is responsible for the results. 

As Reading is to be one of the chief helps of the child in his 
later acquisitions of knowledge, it should come early in the 
course. When he enters school he has already a large capital of 
ideas and thoughts, and a vocabulary to correspond. Thus far 
his giving and receiving of ideas and thoughts has been through 
the use of spoken language. The immediate purpose of teaching 
him to read is to give him the use of a new instrument, the writ- 
ten or printed word. A generation or two ago it was thought 
that the child must learn to read before being taught anything 
else; but now, in harmony with the principles of intellectual 
growth, the elementary phases of all the common school subjects 
are early presented to promote a symmetrical training of all the 
child's powers. The teacher is not condemned, as he once would 
have been, if, while teaching reading, he calls the child's attention 
by oral instructions to such objects about him as he is able to 
comprehend, even though in doing this he should somewhat pro- 
long the time of learning to read. It is indeed of little conse- 
quence that the child read words simply; and that teacher is 
pursuing the order of nature, who so endeavors to develop the 
powers of observation and comparison, that words, when learned, 
shall be vehicles of ideas. Besides, the restless activity of the 
child's mind demands frequent changes of subject, and the teacher 
who skillfully uses this law of the child's nature, can secure in 
various lines, and within the time in which reading alone was 
formerly taught, a large accumulation of facts, thus furnishing 
material for the exercise of faculties which will be more promi- 
nently active at a later period; time will really be saved, the child 
will be healthier and happier, and the problem of school govern- 
ment will be in a measure solved. 



RESPOJSSIBILITY OF THE TEACHER. 31 

Writing, of which printing is only a form, is logically insep- 
arable from reading. Writing presupposes reading as its inter- 
pretation, and reading, in like manner, presupposes the writing 
whi(-h it interprets. Naturally, therefore, they should be taught 
together. At first the pencil and not the pen should be used, for 
obvious reasons, deferring the use of the latter until the muscles 
have acquired sufficient strength and skill to grasp and guide it 
properly. 

Spelling and Defining, constituting as they do, an introduction 
committee whose purpose it is to make the child acquainted with 
strange words, should accompany reading and writing. 

Number is an idea very early in the child's mind. He learns 
early to count, and very readily can be taught to perform those 
operations which we call adding, subtracting, multiplying, and 
dividing. This study at first should be quite concrete ; it there- 
fore requires objects and not a text-book. Gradually the mental 
operation may be abstracted from the material objects in con- 
nection with which it w^as first performed. This is the beginning 
of Mental Arithmetic. When the pupil has learned to read 
intelligently, and has sufficient age and experience, he may be 
allowed a book in preparing his lesson, but not during the recita- 
tion. It is astonishing to what extent the power of attention 
and of vigorous concentration of thought can thus be cultivated. 
Nor is such discipline an unimportant acquisition. None can 
tell its value but those who have experienced the advantage it 
gives them in future school exercises and in business, over those 
who have never had such training. 

Geography may come next to Mental Arithmetic. The child 
should have an idea of the relations of size, form, and space, as 
well as number, before commencing Geography. These, however, 
he acquires naturally at an early age; and very thoroughly, 
if the teacher has taken a little pains to aid him on these points 
in the earliest stages of his progress. A map is a picture, and 
hence a child welcomes it. If it can be a map of some familiar 
object, as of his schoolroom, of the school district, of his father's 
orchard or farm, it becomes an object of great interest. A 



32 PAGE'S THEORY AND PRACTICE. 

map of his town is very desirable, also of his county and his own 
state. 

The purpose of teaching Geography is to give the child a 
rational conception of his earth-home and his relation to it. 
The work should begin with the study of that part of it imme- 
diately about him, and thus, in connection with objects already 
familiar to him, he will acquire the fundamental ideas and learn 
the vocabulary of the subject. 

Further detail will be deferred here, as it is only intended in 
this place to hint at the order of taking up the subjects. 

History should go hand in hand with Geography. Perhaps 
no greater mistake is made than that of deferring History till 
one of the last things in the child's course. 

The true end of historical teaching is to give the individual 
a sympathetic knowledge of the institutional life of the human 
race, and should begin by making him consciously acquainted 
with the institutional life in the midst of which he lives. This will 
give him a basis for the study and interpretation of the larger 
life of which he will later find himself to be a part. 

Written Arithmetic may succeed the mental ; indeed, it may 
be practiced along with it. 

Composition— pevh^^^ by another name as Description — 
should be early commenced and very frequentlj^ practiced. The 
child can be early interested in this, and he probably in this way 
acquires a better knowledge of practical grammar than in any 
other. 

Grammar, in my opinion, as a study, should be one of the 
last of the common school branches to be taken up. It requires 
more maturity of mind to understand its relations and depend- 
encies than any other; and that which is taught of Grammar 
without such an understanding, is a mere smattering of techni- 
cal terms, by which the pupil is injured rather than improved. 
It may be said, that unless scholars commence this branch early, 
they never will have the opportunity to learn it. Then let it go 
unlearned; for, as far as I have seen the world, I am satisfied 
that this early and superficial teaching of a difficult subject is 



RESPOXSIDILITY OF THE TEACHER. 33 

not only useless but positively injurious. How many there are 
who study Grammar for years, and then are obliged to confess 
in after life, because "their speech bewrayeth" them, that they 
never understood it! How many, by the too early study of an 
intricate branch, make themselves think they understand it, and 
thus prevent the hope of any further advancement at the proper 
age! 

Grammar proper is a science. The study of a science pre- 
supposes a knowledge of the facts upon which it is based; these 
the child has not yet acquired. Again, the mastery of a science 
requires a strength and concentration of mental power which are 
as yet only potential in the child. Not only is Grammar a science, 
it is that science which "brings to light and consciousness the 
subtlest operations of the soul itself."* It is therefore not 
adapted to childhood, and should not be studied too early. But 
it must not be inferred from what has been said that language 
instruction is not to be given. On the contrary, from the day the 
child first enters school he should have careful and systematic 
training in the use of his mother tongue. The teacher's example 
should be the first, and a constant, instrument in this instruc- 
tion ; but every exercise in which the child has anything to say 
may be used as a language lesson. Special exercises, however, 
in the observation and description of objects, actions, processes 
and events should be planned. These will serve the double pur- 
pose of training the powers of observation, and of developing 
and training the language faculty. In due time the observation 
of the child should be turned upon language itself, discovering 
the different uses of words and classifying them accordingly ; the 
different uses of sentences and classifying them; and the elements 
that enter into the structure of sentences, based on the elements 
in the thoughts expressed. In this way there will be gradually 
laid a foundation of the facts of Grammar that will furnish, at 
the proper time, the materials for the study of the science. 

Physiology.— This is one of the later subjects admitted to the 
common school course, but its immense disciplinary and practi- 

* Wm. T. Harris. 
T. P.— 3 



34 PAGE'S THEORY AND PRACTICE. 

cal value fully justifies its introduction. While it has a profoundly 
scientific side, it has also its side of simple facts and principles, 
and these lie within easy reach of children. The mechanical, then 
the organic parts of the body, their uses and their proper care, 
can be made the subjects of exceedingly interesting oral lessons. 
Most of the "sins against the body" that are committed by 
children, and by many older persons too, are committed in ignor- 
ance. Ignorance, however, does not protect the body against 
the penalties of violated law. No subject affords the teacher 
better opportunities for impressing the lesson of law and the 
imperative necessity for obedience in order to escape inevitable 
penalty. Children can be trained to good habits of bod3^ based 
upon rational principles, thus developing the exercise of will into 
self-control, giving them fuller possession of their physical powers, 
and increasing both their usefulness and their happiness. 

Of the manner of teaching all these branches, I shall have* 
more to say in due time. At present I have only noticed the 
order in which they should be taken up. This is a question of 
much consequence to the child, and the teacher is generally 
responsible for it. He should therefore carefully consider this 
matter, that he may be able to decide aright. 

2. The Manner of Study.— It is of quite as much importance 
how we study, as what we study. Indeed I have thought that 
much of the difference among men could be traced to their differ- 
ent habits of study, formed in youth. A large portion of our 
scholars study for the sake of preparing to recite the lesson. They 
seem to have no idea of any object beyond recitation. The conse- 
quence is, they study mechanically. They endeavor to remember 
phraseology rather than principles; they study the book, not 
the subject. Let an^^ one enter our schools and see the scholars 
engaged in preparing their lessons. Scarcely one will be seen 
who is not repeating over and over again the words of the text, 
as if there was a saving charm in repetition. Observe the same 
scholars at recitation, and it is a struggle of the memory to recall 
the forms of words. The vacant countenance too often indicates 
that they are words without meaning. This difiSculty is very 



RESPONSIBILITY OF THE TEACHER. 35 

much increased, if the teacher is confined to the text-book during 
recitation; and, particularly, if he relies mainly upon the printed 
questions so often found at the bottom of the page. 

The scholar should be encouraged to study the subject; and 
his book should be held merely as the instrument. ''Books are 
but helps," is a good motto for every student. The teacher 
should often tell how the lesson should be learned. His precept 
in this matter will often be of use. Some scholars will learn a 
lesson in one-tenth of the time required by others. Human life 
is too short to have any of it employed to disadvantage. The 
teacher, then, should inculcate such habits of study as are val- 
uable ; and he should be particularly careful to break up, in the 
recitations, those habits which are so grossly mechanical. A 
child may almost be said to be educated, who has learned to 
study aright; while one may have acquired in the mechanical way 
a great amount of knowledge, and yet have no profitable mental 
discipline. 

For this difference in children, as well as in men, the teacher 
is more responsible than any other person. Let him carefully 
consider this matter. 

3. Collateral Study.— Books to be sure are to be studied, and 
studied chiefly, in most of our schools. But there is much for the 
teacher to do toward the growth of the mind, which is not to be 
found in the school-books ; and it is the practical recognition of 
this fact which constitutes the great difference in teachers. Truth, 
in whatever department, is open to the faithful teacher. And 
there is such a thing, even in the present generation, as " opening 
the eyes of the blind," to discover things new and old, in nature, 
in the arts, in history, in the relation of things. Without dimin- 
ishing, in the least, the progress of the young in study, their 
powers of observation may be cultivated, their perception quick- 
ened, their relish for the acquisition of knowledge indefinitely 
increased, by the instrumentality of the teacher. This must of 
course be done adroitly. There is such a thing as excessively 
cramming the mind of a child, till he loathes everything in the 
way of acquisition. There is such a thing, too, as exciting an 



36 PAGE'S THEORY AXD PRACTICE. 

all-pervading interest in a group of children, so that the scholar 
shall welcome the return of school hours, and, by his cheerful step 
and animated eye, as he seeks the schoolhouse, disclaim, as false, 
when applied to him, the language of the poet, who described the 
school-boy of his darker day, — 

"With his satchel, 
And shining morning face, creeping, like snail, 
Unwillingly to school." 

The teacher, who is responsible for such a result, should take 
care to store his own mind with the material, and exercise the 
ingenuity, to do that which is of so much consequence to the 
scholar. The chapter on "Waking up Mind" will give some 
further hints to the young teacher. 

III. The teacher is id a degree responsible for the moral train- 
ing of the child. 

I say in a degree, because it is confessed that in this matter 
very much likewise depends upon parental influence. 

This education of the heart is confessedly too much neglected 
in all our schools. It has often been remarked that "knowl- 
edge is power," and as truly that "knowledge without principle 
to regulate it may make a man a powerful villain!" It is all- 
important that our youth should early receive such moral ti-ain- 
ing as shall make it safe to give them knowledge. Very much 
of this work must devolve upon the teacher; or rather, when he 
undertakes to teach, he assumes the responsibility of doing or 
of neglecting this work. 

The precept of the teacher may do much toward teaching the 
child his duty to God, to himself, and to his fellow-beings. But 
it is not mainly by precept that this is to be done. Sermons and 
homilies are but little heeded in the schoolroom ; and unless the 
teacher has some other mode of reaching the feelings and the 
conscience, he may despair of being successful in moral training. 

The teacher should bewail versed in human nature. He should 
know the power of conscience and the means of reaching it. He 
should himself have deep principle. His example in everything 
before his school, should be pure, flowing out from the purity of 



RESPONSIBILITY OF THE TEACHER. 37 

his soul. He should ever manifest the tenderest regard to the 
law of right and of love. He should never violate his own sense 
of justice, nor outrage that of his pupils. Such a man teaches by 
his example. He is a ''living epistle, known and read of all." 
He teaches, as he goes in and out before the school, as w'ords can 
never teach. 

The moral feelings of children are capable of systematic and 
successful cultivation. Our muscles acquire strength by use; 
it is so with our intellectual and moral faculties. We educate 
the power of calculation by continued practice, so that the pro- 
ficient adds the long column of figures almost with the rapidity 
of sight, and with infallible accuracy. So with the moral feel- 
ings. "The more frequently we use our conscience," says Dr. 
Wayland, "in judging between actions, as right and wrong, the 
more easily shall we learn to judge correctly concerning them. 
He who, before every action, will deliberately ask himself, 'Is 
this right or wrong?' will seldom mistake what is his duty. 
And children may do this as well as grown persons." Let the 
teacher appeal as often as may be to the pupil's conscience. In 
a thousand ways can this be done, and it is a duty the faithful 
teacher owes to his scholars. 

By such methods of cultivating the conscience as the judicious 
teacher may devise, and by his own pure example, what may he 
not accomplish? If he loves the truth, and ever speaks the 
truth; if he is ever frank and sincere; if, in a word, he shows that 
he has a tender conscience in all things, and that he always 
refers to it for its approval in all his acts,— what an influence 
does he exert upon the impressible minds under his guidance! 
How those children will observe his consistent course; and, 
though they may not speak of it, how great will be its silent 
power upon the formation of their characters! And in future 
years, when they ripen into maturity, how will they remember 
and bless the example they shall have found so safe and salutary. 

Responsibility in this matter cannot be avoided. The teacher 
by his example does teach, for good or for evil, whether he will or 
not. Indifference will not excuse him ; for when most indifferent 



38 PAGE'S THEORY AND PRACTICE. 

he is not less accountable. And if his example be pernicious, as 
too often even yet the example of the teacher is ; if he indulges 
in outbreaks of passion, or wanders in the mazes of deceitful- 
ness ; if the blasphemous oath pollutes his tongue, or the obscene 
jest poisons his breath; if he trifles with the feelings or the 
rights of others, and habitually violates his own conscience, — 
what a blighting influence is his for all coming time ! 

With all the attachment which young pupils will cherish even 
toward a bad teacher, and with all the confidence they will 
repose in him, who can describe the mischief which he can accom- 
plish in one short term? The school is no place for a man with- 
out principle; I repeat, the school is no place for a man with- 
out PRINCIPLE. Let such a man seek a livelihood any where else ; 
or, failing to gain it by other means, let starvation seize the 
body, and send the soul back to its Maker as it is, rather than 
he should incur the fearful guilt of poisoning youthful minds 
and dragging them down to his own pitiable level. If there 
can be one sin greater than another, on which Heaven frowns 
with more awful displeasure, it is that of leading the young into 
principles of error and the debasing practices of vice. 

"Oh, woe to those who trample on the mind, 
That deathless thing! They know not what they do, 
Nor what they deal with. Man, perchance, may bind 
The flower his step hath bruised ; or fight anew 
The torch he quenches; or to music wind 
Again the lyre-string from his touch that flew; — 
But for the soul, oh, tremble and beware 
To lay rude hands upon God's mysteries there!" 

Let then the teacher study well his motives when he enters 
this profession, and so let him meet his responsibility in this 
matter as to secure the approval of his own conscience and his 
God. 

IV. The teacher is to some extent responsible for the religious 
TRAINING of the young. 

We live in a Christian land. It is our glory, if not our boast, 
that we have descended from an ancestry that feared God and 



RESPONSIBILITY OF THE TEACHER. 39 

reverenced His Word. Very justly we attribute our superiority 
as a people over those who dwell in the darker portions of the 
world, to our purer faith derived from that precious fountain of 
truth— the Bible. Very justly, too, does the true patriot and 
philanthropist rely upon our faith and practice as a Christian 
people for the permanence of our free institutions and our 
unequaled social privileges. 

If we are so much indebted, then, to the Christian religion for 
what we are, and so much dependent upon its life-giving truths 
for what we may hope to be,— how important it is that all our 
youth should be nurtured under its influences! 

When I say religious training, I do not mean sectarianism. 

In our public schools, supported at the public expense, and in 
which the children of all denominations meet for instruction, I 
do not think that any man has a right to crowd his own peculiar 
notions of theology upon all, whether they are acceptable or 
not. Yet there is common ground which he can occupy, and 
to w^hich no reasonable man can object. He can teach a rever- 
ence for the Supreme Being, a reverence for His Holy Word, for 
the influences of His Spirit, for the character and teachings of 
the Savior, and for the momentous concerns of eternity. He can 
teach the evil of sin in the sight of God, and the awful conse- 
quences of it upon the individual. He can teach the duty of 
repentance, and the privilege of forgiveness. He can teach our 
duty to worship God, to obey His laws, to seek the guidance of 
His Spirit, and the salvation by His Son. He can illustrate the 
blessedness of the divine life, the beauty of holiness, and the 
joyful hope of Heaven ; —and to all this no reasonable man will 
be found to object, so long as it is done in a truly Christian 
spirit. 

If not in express words, most certainly his life and example 
should teach this. Man is a religious being. The religious prin- 
ciple should be early cultivated. It should be safely and carefully 
cultivated; and, as this cultivation is too often entirely neglected 
by parents, unless it is attempted by the teacher, in many cases 
it will never be effected at all. 



40 PAGE'S THEORY AND PRACTICE. 

Of course, all those points which separate the community into 
sects, must be left to the family, the Sabbath-school, and the 
pulpit. The teacher is responsible for his honesty in this matter. 
While he has no right to lord it over the private conscience of 
anyone, he is inexcusable, if, believing the great truths of the 
Bible, he puts them away as if they concerned him not. They 
should command his faith, and govern his conduct; and their 
claims upon the young should not be disowned. 

At any rate, the teacher should be careful that his teaching 
and his example do not prejudice the youthful mind against these 
truths. It is a hazardous thing for a man to be skeptical by 
himself, even when he locks his opinions up in the secrecy of his 
own bosom; how great then is the responsibility of teaching the 
young to look lightly upon the only book that holds out to us 
the faith of immortality, and opens to us the hope of Heaven ! 
Let the teacher well consider this matter, and take heed that 
his teaching shall never lead one child of earth away from his 
heavenly Father, or from the rest of the righteous in the home of 
the blest. 

In view of w^hat has been said, the young candidate for the 
teacher's oflSce, almost in despair of success, may exclaim, "Who 
is sufficient for these things?" "Who can meet and sustain 
such responsibility?-' My answer is, the true inquirer after duty 
will not go astray. He is insufficient for these things, who is self- 
confident, who has not yet learned his own weakness, who has 
never found out his own faults, and who rushes to this great 
work, as the unheeding "horse rusheth into the battle," not 
knowing whither he goeth. Alas, how many there are who enter 
this profession without the exercise of a single thought of the 
responsibleness of the position, or of any of the great questions 
which must in their schools for the first time be presented for 
their decision ! How many there are who never reflect upon the 
influence of their example before the young, and are scarcely 
conscious that their example is of any consequence! Such, in 
the highest sense, will fail of success. How can they be expected 
to go right, where there is only one right way, but a thousand 



RESPONSIBILITY OF THE TEACHER. 41 

wrong? Let such persons pause and consider, before they assume 
responsibihties whicli they can neither discharge nor evade. Let 
such ask with deep solicitude, "Who is sufficient for these 
things?" But to the young person really desirous of improve- 
ment ; to him who has taken the first and important step toward 
knowledge, by making the discovery that everything is not 
already known; to him who sees beforehand that there are real 
difficulties in this profession, and who is not too proud or self- 
conceited to feel the need of special preparation to meet them ; 
to him who has some idea of the power of example in the 
educator, and who desires most of all things that his character 
shall be so pure as to render his example safe; to him who has 
discovered that there are some deep mysteries in human nature, 
and that they are only to be fathomed by careful study; to him 
who really feels that a great thing is to be done, and who has 
the sincere desire to prepare himself to do it aright; to him, in 
short, who has the true spirit of the teacher,—! may say, there is 
nothing to fear. An honest mind, with the requisite industry, is 
sufficient for these things. 

SECTION III.— THE AUBURN STATE PRISON. 

During my visit at Auburn, in the autumn of 1845, 1 was 
invited by a friend to visit the prison, in which at that time were 
confined between six and seven hundred convicts. I was first 
taken through the various workshops, where the utmost neatness 
and order prevailed. As I passed along, my eye rested upon one 
after another of the convicts, I confess, with a feeling of surprise. 
There were many good-looking men. If, instead of their parti- 
colored dress, they could have been clothed in the citizen's garb, 
I should have thought them as good in appearance as laboring 
men in general. And when, to their good appearance, was added 
their attention to their work, their ingenuity, and the neatness of 
their work-rooms, my own mind began to press the inquiry, Why 
are these men here? It was the afternoon of Saturday. Many 
of them had completed their allotted work for the week, and with 
happy faces were performing the customary ablutions prepara- 



42 PAGE'S THEORY AND PRACTICE. 

tor J to the Sabbath. Passing on, we came to the Hbrary, a 
collection of suitable books for the convicts, which are given out 
as a reward for diligence to those who have seasonably and faith- 
fully performed their labor. Here were many who had come to 
take their books. Their faces beamed with delight as they each 
bore away the desired volume, just as I had seen the faces of the 
happy and the free do before. Why are these men here? was 
again pressed upon me— Why are these men here? 

At this time the famous Wyatt, since executed upon the gal- 
lows for his crime, was in solitary confinement, awaiting his trial 
for the murder of Gordon, a fellow-prisoner. I was permitted to 
enter his room. Chained to the floor, he was reclining upon his 
mattress in the middle of his apartment. As I approached him, 
his large black eye met mine. He was a handsome man. His 
head was well developed, his long black hair hung upon his neck, 
and his eye was one of the most intelligent I ever beheld. Had I 
seen him in the senate among great men, — had I seen him in a 
school of philosophers, or a brotherhood of poets, I should prob- 
ably have selected him as the most remarkable man among 
them all, without suspecting his distinction to be a distinction 
of villainy. Why is that man here? thought I, as I turned away 
to leave him to his dreadful solitude. 

The morrow was the Sabbath. I could not repress my desire 
to see the convicts brought together for worship. At the hour of 
nine I entered their chapel, and found them all seated in silence. 
I was able to see most of the faces of this interesting congre- 
gation. It was by no means the worst looking congregation I 
had ever seen. There were evidently bad men there; but what 
congregation of free men does not present some such. 

They awaited in silence the commencement of the service. 
When the morning hymn was read, they joined in the song, the 
chorister being a colored man of their owai number. They sung 
as other congregations sing, and my voice joined with theirs. 
The Scripture was read. They gave a respectful attention. 
The prayer was begun. ' Some bowed in apparent reverence at 
the commencement. Others sat erect, and two or three of these 



RFSPOSSIBILITY OF THE TEACHER. 43 

appeared to be the hardened sons of crime. The chaplain's voice 
was of a deep, perhaps I should say, a fatherly tone, and he 
seemed to have the father's spirit. He prayed for these "way- 
ward ones," who were deprived of their liberty for their offenses, 
but whom God would welcome to his throne of mercy. He prayed 
for their homes, and for their friends who this day would send 
their thoughts hither in remembrance of those in bonds. He 
alluded to the scenes of their childhood, the solicitude of their 
early friends, and the affection of their parents. When the 
words home, friend, childhood, were heard, several of those 
sturdy sons of crime and wretchedness instinctively bowed their 
heads and concealed their faces in their hands; and as a fathers 
blessing and a mother'' s love were alluded to, more than one of 
these outcasts from society, were observed to dash the scalding 
tear from the eye. These men feel like other men,— i^^/ij are they 
here ? was again the thought which forced itself upon my mind ; 
and while the chaplain proceeded to his sermon, in the midst of 
the silence that pervaded tlie room, my mind ran back to their 
educators. 

Once these men were children like others. They had feelings 
like other children, affection, reverence, teachableness, conscience, 
—why are they here? Some, very likely, on account of their 
extraordinary perversity; but most because they had a wrong 
education. More than half, undoubtedly, have violated the laws 
of their country, not from extraordinary viciousness, but from 
the weakness of their moral principle. Tempted, just like other 
and better men, they fell, because in early childhood no one had 
cultivated and strengthened the conscience God had given them. 
I am not disposed to excuse the vices of men, nor to screen 
them from merited punishment; neither do I worship a "painted 
morality," based solely upon education, thus leaving nothing 
for the religion of the Bible to accomplish by purifying the heart, 
that fountain of wickedness ; yet how many of these men might 
have been saved to society; how many of them have powers 
which under different training might have adorned and blessed 
their race; how many of them may date their fall to the evil 



44 PAGE'S THEORY AND PRACTICE. 

influence and poisonous example of some guide of their childhood, 
some recreant teacher of their early days,— God only knows ! But 
what a responsibility still rests upon the head of any such teacher, 
if he did not know, or did not try to know, the avenue to their 
hearts ; if he did not feel or try to feel the worth of moral principle 
to these very fallen ones! And what would be his feelings if he 
could look back through the distant days of the past, and count 
up exactly the measure of his own faithfulness and of his own 
neglect? This the All-seeing Eye alone can do,— this He who 
looketh upon the heart ever does! 

Teachers, go forth, then, conscious of your responsibility to 
your pupils, conscious of your accountability to God, go forth 
and teach this people; and endeavor so to teach, that when you 
meet your pupils, not in the walks of life merely, not perhaps in 
the Auburn Prison, not indeed upon the shores of time, but at 
the final Judgment ^here you must meet them all, you may be 
able to give a good account of the influence which you have 
exerted over mind. As it may then be forever too late to correct 
your errors and efface any injur^^ done, study now to act the 
part of wisdom and the part of love. 

Study the human heart by studying the workings of your own ; 
seek carefully the avenues to the affections; study those higher 
motives which elevate and ennoble the soul; cultivate that purity 
which shall allure the wayward, by bright example, from the 
paths of error ; imbue your own souls with the love of teaching 
and the greatness of your work ; Ye\j not alone upon yourselves, 
as if by your own wisdom and might you could do this great 
thing ; but seek that direction which our heavenly Father never 
withholds from the honest inquirer after his guidance,— and 
though the teacher's work is, and ever must be, attended with 
overwhelming responsibility, you will be sufficient for these 

THINGS. 



CHAPTER III. 

PERSONAL HABITS OF THE TEACHER. 

The importance of correct habits to any individual cannot be 
overrated. The influence of the teacher is so great upon the 
children under his care, either for good or evil, that it is of the 
utmost importance to them as well as to himself that his habits 
should be unexceptionable. It is the teacher's sphere to improve 
the community in which he moves, not only in learning, but in 
morals and manners; in everything that is "lovely and of good 
report." This he may do partly by precept,— but very much by 
example. He teaches, wherever he is. His manners, his appear- 
ance, his character, are all the subject of observation, and to a 
great extent of imitation, by the young in his district. He is 
observed not only in the school, but in the family, in the social 
gathering, and in the religious meeting. How desirable then that 
he should be a model in all things! 

Man has been said to be a "bundle of habits; " and it has been 
as pithily remarked— "Happy is the man whose habits are his 
friends." It w^ere well if all persons, before they become teachers, 
would attend carefully to the formation of their personal habits. 
This, unhappily, is not always done,— and therefore I shall make 
no apology for introducing in this place some very plain remarks 
on what I deem the essentials among the habits of the teacher. 

1. Neatness.— This implies cleanliness of the person. If some 
who assume to teach were not proverbial for their slovenliness, 
I would not dwell on this point. On this point, however, I must 
be allowed great plainness of speech, even at the expense of 
incurring the charge of excessive nicety ; for it is by attending 
to a few little things that one becomes a strictly neat person. 
The morning ablution, then, should never be omitted, and the 
comb for the hair and brush for the clothes should always be 

(45) 



46 PAGE'S THEORY AND PRACTICE. 

called into requisition before the teacher presents himself to the 
family, or to his school. Every teacher would very much pro- 
mote his own health by washing the whole surface of the body 
every morning in cold water. This is now done by very many 
of the most enlightened teachers, as well as others. When 
physiology is better understood, this practice will be far more 
general. To no class of persons is it more essential than to the 
teacher; for on account of his confinement, often in an unventi- 
lated room, with half a hundred children during the daj, very 
much more is demanded of the exhalents in him than in others. 
His only safety is in a healthy action of the skin. 

The teeth should be attended to. A brush and clean water 
have saved many a set of teeth. It is bad enough to witness the 
deplorable neglect of these important organs so prevalent in the 
community; but it is extremely mortifying to see a filthj^ set of 
teeth in the mouth of the teacher of our youth. The na^ils, too, 
I am sorry to say, are often neglected by some of our teachers, 
till their ebony tips are anything but ornamental. This matter 
is made worse, when, in the presence of the family or of the 
school, the penknife is brought into requisition to remove that 
which should have received attention at the time of washing in 
the morning. The teacher should remember that it is a vulgar 
habit to pare or clean the nails while in the presence of others, 
and especially during conversation with them. 

The teacher should be neat in his dress. I do not urge that 
his dress should be expensive. His income ordinarilj^ will not 
admit of this. He may wear a very plain dress; nor should it 
be any way singular in its fashion. All I ask is, that his cloth- 
ing should be in good taste, and always clean. A slovenly dress, 
covered with dust, or spotted with grease, is never so much out 
of its proper place as when it clothes the teacher. 

"WJliile upon this subject I may be indulged in a word or two 
upon the use of tobacco by the teacher. It is quite a puzzle to 
me to tell why anj^ man but a Turk, who may lawfully dream 
away half his existence over the fumes of this filthy narcotic, 
should ever use it. Even if there were nothing wrong in the use 



PERSONAL HABITS OF THE TEACHER. 47 

of unnatural stimulants themselves, the filthiness of tobacco is 
enough to condemn it among teachers, especially in the form of 
chewing. It is certainly worth while to ask whether there is not 
some moral delinquency in teaching this practice to the young, 
while it is admitted, by nearly all who have fallen into the habit, 
to be an evil, and one from which they would desire to be 
delivered. At any rate, I hope the time is coming, when the 
good taste of teachers, and a regard for personal neatness and 
the comfort of others, shall present motives sufficiently strong to 
induce them to break away from a practice at once so unrea- 
sonable and so disgusting. 

2. Order.— In this place I refer to that system and regularity 
so desirable in every teacher. He should practice it in his room, 
at his boarding-house. Everything should have its place. His 
books, his clothing, should all be arranged with regard to this 
principle. The same habit should go with him to the school- 
room. His desk there should be a pattern of orderly arrange- 
ment. Practicing this himself, he may with propriety insist upon 
it in his 'pupils. It is of great moment to the teacher, that, 
when he demands order and arrangement among his pupils, they 
cannot appeal to any breach of it in his own practice. 

3. Courtesy.— The teacher should ever be courteous, both in 
his language and in his manners. Courtesy of language ma^^ 
impl}^ a freedom from all coarseness. There is a kind of com- 
munication, used among boatmen and hangers-on at barrooms 
w hich should find no place in the teacher's vocabulary. All vul- 
gar jesting, all double-entendres, all low allusions, should be 
forever excluded from his mouth. And profanity— can it be 
necessary that 1 should speak of this as among the habits of the 
teacher? Yes, it is even so. Such is the want of moral sense in 
the communit^^, that men are still employed in some districts, 
whose ordinary conversation is poisoned with the breath of blas- 
phemy; ay, and even the walls of the schoolroom resound to 
undisguised oaths! I cannot find words to express my astonish- 
ment at the indifference of parents, or at the recklessness of 
teachers, wherever I know such cases to exist. 



48 PAGE'S THEORY AND PRACTICE. 

Speaking of the language of the teacher, I might urge also 
that it should be both pure and accurate. Pure as distinguished 
from all those cant phrases and provincialisms which amuse the 
vulgar in certain localities; and accurate as to the terms used 
to express his meaning. As the teacher teaches in this, as in 
everything, by example as well as by precept, he should be very 
careful to acquire an unexceptionable use of our language, and 
never deviate from it in the hearing of his pupils or elsewhere. 

There is a courtesy of manner, also, which should characterize 
the teacher. This is not that ridiculous obsequiousness which 
some persons assume, when they would gain the good opinion 
of others. It is true politeness. By politeness I do not mean 
any particular form of words, nor any prescribed or prescrib- 
able mode of action. It does not consist in bowing according 
to any approved plan, nor in a compliance simply with the for- 
mulas of etiquette in the fashionable world. True politeness is 
founded in benevolence. Its law is embodied in the golden rule 
of the Savior:— "Whatsoever ye would that men should do to 
you, do ye even so unto them." It is the exercise of real kind- 
ness. It entertains a just regard for the feelings of others, and 
seeks to do for them what would make them really happy. 

The teacher should possess this quality. Whenever he meets a 
child, it should be with the looks and words of kindness. When- 
ever he receives any token of regard from a pupil, he should 
acknowledge it in the true spirit of politeness. Whenever he 
meets a pupil in the street, or in a public place, he should cor- 
dially recognise him. In this way and a thousand others, w^hich, 
if he have the right spirit, will cost him nothing, he will culti- 
vate true courtesy in his pupils. He can do it in this way more 
effectually than he can by formally lecturing upon the subject. 
True politeness will always win its true reciprocation. Two 
teachers were once walking together in the streets of a large 
town in New England. Several lads whom they met on the side- 
walk, raised their caps as they exchanged the common saluta- 
tions with one of the teachers. "What boys are these that pay 
you such attention as they pass?" inquired the other. "They 



PERSONAL HABITS OF THE TEACHER. 49 

are my scholars," answered his friend. "Your scholars! Why 
how do you teach them to be so very polite? Mine are pretty 
sure never to look at me; and generally they take care to be on 
the other side of the street." "I am unable to tell," said his 
friend ; " I never say anything about it. I usually bow to them, 
and they are as ready to bow to me." The whole secret con- 
sisted in this teacher's meeting his pupils in the spirit of kind- 
ness. I would not, however, discourage a teacher from actually 
inculcating good manners by precept. It should indeed be done. 
The manners of pupils are too much neglected in most of our 
schools, and, I am sorry to say, in most of our families. Our 
youth are growing up with all the independence of sturdy young 
republicans, — and, in their pride of freedom from governmental 
restraint, they sometimes show a want of respect for their 
seniors and superiors, which is quite mortifying to all lovers 
of propriety. It is the teacher's province to counteract this; 
and in order to do it well, he should possess the virtue of true 
courtesy, both in theory and practice. 

4. Punctuality. — This, as a, habit, is essential to the teacher. 
He should be punctual in everything. He should always be pres- 
ent at or before the time for opening the school. A teacher who 
goes late to school once a week, or even once a month, cannot 
very well enforce the punctual attendance of his pupils. I once 
knew a man who for seven long years was never late at school 
a single minute, and seldom did he fail to reach his place more 
than five minutes before the time. I never knew but one such. 
I have known scores who w^ere frequently tardy, and sometimes 
by the space of a whole hour! 

A teacher should be as punctual in dismissing as in opening 
his school. I know that some make a virtue of keeping their 
schools beyond the regular hours. I have always considered 
this a very questionable virtue. If a teacher wishes to stay 
beyond his time, it should be either with delinquents, who have 
some lessons to make up, or with those who voluntarily remain. 
But, after all, if he has been strictly punctual to the hours assigned 
for his various duties in school, there will scarcely be the necessity 
T. p.— 4 



50 PAGE'S THEORY AND PRACTICE. 

for him, or any of his pupils, to remain beyond the time for dis- 
mission; and, as a general rule, a regard both for his own health 
and theirs should forbid this. It is better to work diligently" 
while one does work, and not to protract the time of labor, 
so as to destroy one's energy for to-moiTow. 

This habit of punctuality should run through everj^thing. 
He should be punctual at all engagements; he should be stu- 
diously so in all the detail of school exercises; he should be so 
at his meals, at his private studies, at his hour of retiring at 
night and of rising in the morning, and also at his exercise and 
recreation. This is necessary to a truly exemplary character, and 
it is equally as necessary to good health. 

5. Habits op Study.— Unless the teacher takes care to fur- 
nish his own mind, he will soon find his present stock of knowl- 
edge, however liberal that may be, fading from his memory and 
becoming unavailable. To prevent this, and to keep along with 
every improvement, he should regularly pursue a course of study. 
I say regularly; for in order to accomplish anything really 
desirable, he must do something every day. By strict system 
in all his arrangements, he may find time to do it; and whenever 
I am told by a teacher that he cannot find time to stud}^! always 
infer that there is a want of order in his arrangements, or a want 
of punctuality in the observance of that order. Human life 
indeed is short; but most men still further abridge the period 
allotted to them by a disregard of system. 



What has now been said, upon the teachefs spirit, the teachers 
responsibility, and the teacher's personal habits, will embody per- 
haps my views upon the character of the individual, who may be 
encouraged to engage in the work of teaching. Nor do I think 
the requirements in this department have been overstated. I 
know, indeed, that too many exercise the teacher's functions 
without the teacher's spirit as here described, and without the 
sense of responsibility here insisted on, and with habits entirely 
inconsistent with those here required. But this does not prove 



PERSONAL HABITS OF THE TEACHER. 51 

that such teachers have chosen the right calling*, or that tlie 
children under their care are under safe and proper guidance. It 
proves rather that parents and school officers have too often 
neglected to be vigilant, or that suitable teachers could not be 
had-. 

Let none think of lowering the standard to what has been, 
or what may even now be that of a majority of those who are 
engaged in this profession. Every young teacher's eye should be 
directed to the very best model in this work; and he should never 
be satisfied with bare mediocrity. Excelsior, the motto of the 
Empire State, may well be the motto of the young teacher. 



CHAPTER lY. 

LITERARY QUALIFICATIONS OF THE TEACHER. 

I AM now about to enter an extensive field. Since the teacher 
is to be the life of the school, it is of great consequence that he 
have within him the means of sustaining life. 

As the statutes in many of the states prescribe the minimum 
of attainment for the teacher, I might perhaps spare myself the 
labor of writing on this point. Yet in a thorough work on the 
Theory and Practice of Teaching, this very properly comes under 
consideration. 

The profession of teaching is advancing. The present stand- 
ard of acquirement demanded of the teacher, excli^des many 
•\^dlo were considered quite respectable in their vocation ten years 
ago. This may well be so, for within that time quite an advance 
has been made in the compensation offered to teachers. It is but 
reasonable that acquirement should keep pace with the reward 
of it. Indeed, the talent and attainment brought into the field, 
must always be in advance of the rate of compensation. The 
people must be first convinced that teachei's are better than they 
were years ago, and then they will be ready to reward them. In 
Massachusetts, according to statistics in the possession of the 
Hon. Horace Mann, Secretary of the Board of Education, the 
compensation of teachers within ten years has advanced thirty- 
three per cent.; nor is it reasonable to suppose that this advance 
has been made independent of any improvement among the 
teachers. Their system of supervision has increased in strict- 
ness, during this time, in an equal ratio; and many teachers, 
who were entirely incompetent for their places, have thus been 
driven to other employments. The cause is still onward ; and 
the time is not far distant when the people will demand still 
more thorough teachers for the common schools, and they will 
find it for their interest to pay for them. 
(52) 



LITERARY QUALIFICATIONS OF THE TEACHER. 53 

Under these circumstances, it will not be my design to give 
the very lowest qualifications for a teacher at present. I shall 
aim to describe those which a teacher ought to possess, in order 
to command, for some time to come, the respect of the enlight- 
ened part of the community. 1 will not say that a man, with 
less attainment than I shall describe, may not keep a good 
school; 1 have no doubt that many do. Yet if our profession is 
to be really respectable, and truly deserving of the regard of an 
enlightened people, we must have a still higher standard of qual- 
ification than I shall now insist on. The following is a list of 
the studies of which every teacher should T^ave acorn ]jetent knowl- 
edge. I add also to each, such word of comment as appears to be 
necessary. 

1. Orthography. — This implies soi^ething more than mere 
spelling. Spelling is certainly indispensable. No person should 
ever think of teaching, who is not an accurate speller. But the 
nature and powers of letters should also be mastered. We have 
in our language about forty elementary sounds; yet we have but 
twentj'-six characters to represent them. Our alphabet is there- 
fore imperfect. This imperfection is augmented by the fact that 
several of the letters are employed each to represent several dif- 
ferent sounds. In other cases, two letters combined represent 
the element. There are also letters, as c, q, and x, which have no 
sound that is not fully represented by other letters. Then a very 
large number of our letters are silent in certain positions, while 
they are fully sounded in others. It were much to be desired 
that we might have ix perfect alphabet, that is, as many charac- 
ters as we have elementary sounds, and that each letter should 
have but one sound. For the present this cannot be; and the 
present generation of teachers, at least, will have to teach our 
present orthography. Those systems of orthography are much 
to be preferred which begin with the elementary sounds, and then 
present the letters as their representatives, together with the 
practice of analyzing words into their elements, thus showing at 
once the silent letters and tlie equivalents. These systems may 
be taught in half the time that the old S3'stems can be; and 



54 PAGE'S THEORY AND PliACTICE. 

when acquired, they are of much greater practical utihtytothe 
learner. 

2. Reading.— Every teacher should be a good reader. Not 
more tlian one in every hundred among teachers cannowbe called 
a good reader. To be able to read well, implies a quick percep- 
tion of the meaning as well as the proper enunciation of the 
words. It is a branch but poorly taught in most of our schools. 
Many of the older pupils get above reading before they have 
learned to read well; and, unfortunately, many of our teachers 
cannot awaken an interest in the subject, because very likely they 
cannot read any better than their scholars. 

It would be interesting to ascertain how large a proportion 
of our youth leave the schools without accjuiring the power readily 
to take the sense of any common paragraph which they may 
attemptto read. I am inclined to think the number is not small.* 
In this way I account for the fac't that so many cease to read 
as soon as they leave school. It costs them so much effort to 
decipher the meaning of a book, that it counteracts the desire for 
the gratification and improvement it might otherwise afford. It 
should not be so. The teacher should be a model of good read- 
ing; he should be enthusiastic in this branch, and never rest till 
he has excited the proper interest in it among the pupils, from 



* Siucc writing tlie above, my eye has fallen upon the following from the second 
Annual Report of the Secretary of the Massachusetts Board of Education : "I have 
devoted," says Mr. Mann, " especial pains to learn, with some degree of numerical 
accuracy, how far the reading in our schools is an exercise of the mind in thinking 
and feeling, and how far it is a barren action of the organs of speech upon the 
atmosphere. My information is derived principally from the written statements 
of the school committees of the different towns,— gentlemen who are certainly 
exempt from all temptation to disparage the schools they superintend. The result 
is that more than eleven-twelfths Of all the childien in the reading classes in our 
schools, do not understand the meaning of the words they read; that they do not 
master the sense of their reading lessons ; and that the ideas and feelings intended 
by the author to be conveyed to and excited in the reader's mind, still rest in the 
author's intention, never having yet reached the place of their destination. It 
would hardly seem that the combined efforts of all persons engaged could have 
accomplished more in defeating the true objects of reading. How the cause of 
this deficiency is to be apportioned among the legal supervisors of the schools, 
parents, teachers, and authors of text-books, it is impossible to say; but surely it 
is an evil gratuitous, widely prevalent, and threatening the most alarming conse- 
quences." 



LITERARY QUALIFICATIONS OF THE TEACHER. 55 

the oldest to the youngest, in the school. He should bear in 
mind that he who can read intelligently, and he alone, holds the 
key to the great literary storehouse which contains the accumu- 
lated wealth of wisdom and experience gathered and stored b}^ 
all the ages past ; he should feel the responsibility of putting that 
key into the hands of every child under his care; and he should 
not rest satisfied until each child has acquired, not only the 
ability but the disposition to use it and possess himself of the 
inheritance thus transmitted to him. 

It would be well if our teachers could be somewhat acquainted 
with the Latin and Greek languages, as this would afford them 
great facilities in comprehending and defining many of our own 
words. As this cannot l)e expected for the present, a substitute 
maybe sought in some analysis of our derivative words. Several 
works have somewhat recently been pi'epared, to supply, as far 
as may be, the wants of those who have not studied the classics. 
I should advise every teacher, for his own benefit, to master some 
of these. 

3. Writing.— It is not respectable for the teacher of the young 
to be a bad writer; nor can it ever become so, even should the 
majority of bad writers continue to increase. The teacher 
should take great^pains to write a plain, legible hand. This is an 
essential qualification. 

It is not enough that he be able to write a good hand,heshould 
comprehend the inestimable value of writing as the means by 
which knowledge is preserved and handed on from generation to 
generation. 

Writing and reading may well be called the memory of the 
race, writing being the element of retention, reading that of 
recollection. Such a view of these subjects will invest them with 
a ncAV and ever-living interest. 

4. Geography.— A knowledge of the principles of Geography 
is essential. This implies an acquaintance with the use of 
globes, and the art of map-drawing. The teacher should be 
so well versed in Geography, that, with an outline map of any 
country before him, he could give an intelhgent account of its 



56 PAGE'S THEORY AND PRACTICE. 

surface, people, resources, history, etc. ; aud if the outhne map 
were not at hand, he ought to be able to draw one from mem- 
ory,— at least, of each of the grand divisions of the earth, and 
of the United States. 

This subject has grown to be a very complete science, involv- 
ing the correlation and organization of all that is known about 
the earth, viewed especially as the home of man. More than any 
other subject, especially in its higher phases, Geography removes 
from man his limitations in space, and enables him to become, 
consciously, a citizen of the world. 

5. History.— This, too, is taking rapid strides toward scientific 
form and method. To the teacher it must mean more than a 
mere record of past events. The history of a people is the devel- 
opment of its institutional life, not the '< dusty, musty records of 
that life." He must be familiar with, at least, the history of his 
own country; but as its institutional life and growth are so 
intimately related to those of some other countries, he must 
study it in its relations to them. This is the subject, which 
more than any other, enables man to remove from himself his 
limitations in time, and gives him the wonderful power to live 
in all the past generations of men and thus take to himself the 
rich institutional heritage that the ages have been accumulat- 
ing for him. 

The teacher should by no means overlook the intimate rela- 
tions existing between Geography and History. The physical 
characteristics of a country greatly modify, or even determine, 
its historical development; while, on the other hand, the history 
of any highly civilized country, influences in many ways its geo- 
graphical features. In teaching them, much light and interest 
maybe thrown upon each of these subjects by illustrations drawn 
from the other. 

6. Literature.— In Literature is found, perhaps, our .richest 
heritage from the past. Through its masterpieces the highest 
and holiest aspirations of the human race have found expression. 
The teacher who has never made himself acquainted with the 
great minds of the past through Literature has missed one of 



LITERARY QUALIFICATIONS OF THE TEACHER. 57 

the choicest means of his own culture, and of influencing" for 
their elevation the minds of others. He ought to be familiar 
with the history and the masterpieces of his own language, 
and should keep pace with the best of the current writings of 
his own time. 

Geography, intelligently studied, may become a. fairly good 
substitute for travel; History may take the place of residence 
in an age or a country and observation of its institutional life; 
while Literature may answer for personal intercourse with the 
wise. Travel, observation of institutional life, and intercourse 
with the wise have always been regarded as the greatest means 
of culture. It is apparent, then, that Geography, Histor^^, and 
Literature are the most important of our culture studies. 

7. Mental Arithmetic. — Let every teacher be thoroughly 
skilled in this subject. It is not enough that the teacher is able 
in some way to obtain the answers to the questions proposed. 
He should- be able to give the reason for every step in the pro- 
cess he takes to obtain them, and to do it in a clear and concise 
manner. It is this which constitutes the value of this branch 
as a discipline for the mind. 

I may never forget my first introduction to (^olbnrn's Intellec- 
tual Arithmetic. On entering an academy as a student, in 1827, 
after I had "ciphered through " some four or five arithmetics on 
the old plan, my teacher asked me if I had ever studied Mental 
Arithmetic, extending to me Colburn's Intellectual Arithmetic. 
" No, sir." "Perhaps you Avould like to do so." I opened to the 
first page, and saw this question: "How many thumbs have 
you on your right hand?" This was enough; the color came 
into my face and I pettishly replied, "I think I can find out the 
number of my thumbs without studying a book for it." "But," 
said the teacher, "many of our young men have studied it and 
they think they have been profited. If you will take it, and turn 
over till you find a little exercise for your mind, I think you will 
like it." His manner was ©pen and sincere, and I took the little 
book. In three wrecks I had mastered it; and I had gained, in 
that time, more knowledge of the principles of arithmetic than 



58 PAGE'S THEOIIY AND PRACTICE. 

I had ever acquired in all my life before. I no longer "saw 
through a glass darkly." 

8. Written Arithmetic— This everybody demands of the 
teacher; and he is scarcely in danger of being without fair pre- 
tensions in this branch. He should, however, know it by its 
principles, rather than by its rules and facts. He should so 
understand it, that if every arithmetic in the world should be 
burned, he could still make another, constructing its rules and 
explaining their principles. He should understand Arithmetic so 
well, that he could teach it thoroughly though all text-books 
should be excluded from his schoolroom. This is not demand- 
ing too much. Arithmetic is a certain science, and used every 
day of one's life,— the teacher should be an entire master of it. 
And when he reflects that without Arithmetic the wonderful 
exchanges made through the net-work of modern business must 
be reduced to the simple barter of barbarous times ; that with- 
out Arithmetic the manufacture and manipulation of delicate 
or highly effective machinery must cease; that the almost miracu- 
lous processes of the chemical and physical laboratory must be 
suspended; and that without the proportion of numbers, archi- 
tecture, sculpture, painting, and even poetry and music must all 
lose their charms, then he can comprehend to what an extent 
Arithmetic lies at the foundation of modern civilization and con- 
tributes to the physical, intellectual, and even spiritual welfare 
of mankind; then he can see why the teacher should be an entire 
master of it. 

9. English Grammar. — It is rare that a teacher is found 
without some pretensions to English Grammar; yet it is deplor- 
able to observe how very few have any liberal or philosophical 
acquaintance with it. In many cases it is little else than a sys- 
tem of barren technicalities. The teacher studies one book, and 
too often takes that as his creed. In no science is it more nec- 
essary to be acquainted with several authors. The person who 
has studied but one text-book on Grammar, even if that be the 
best one extant, is but poorly qualified to teach this branch. 
There is a philosophy of language which the teacher should 



LITERARY QUALIFICATIONS OF THE TEACHER. 59 

carefully study, and if within his power, he should have some 
acquaintance with the peculiar structure of other languages 
besides his own. 

10. Algebra.— This branch is not yet required to be taught 
in all our schools; jet the teacher should have a thorough 
acquaintance with it. Even if he is never called upon to teach 
it (and it never should be introduced into our common schools 
till very thorough attainments are more common in the other 
branches), still it so much improves the mind of the teacher, 
that he should not be without a knowledge of it. He will teach 
Simple Arithmetic much better for knowing Algebra. I consider 
an acquaintance with it indispensable to the thorough teacher, 
even of the common school. 

11. Geometry. — The same maybe said of this branch that has 
been said of Algebra. Probably nothing disciplines the mind 
more effectually than the study of Geometry. The teacher should 
pursue it for this reason. He will teach other things the better 
for having had this discipline, to say nothing of the advantage 
which a knowledge of the principles of Geometry will give him, 
in understanding and explaining the branches of mathematics. 

12. Plane Trigonometry and Surveying.— In many of our 
schools these branches are required to be taught. They are 
important branches in themselves, and they also afford good 
exercise for the mind in their acquisition. The young teacher, 
especially the male teacher, should make the acquirement. 

13. Natural Philosophy.— This branch is not taught in most 
of our district schools. The teacher, however, should under- 
stand it better than it is presented in many of the simple text- 
books on this subject. He should have studied the philosophy of 
its principles and be fully acquainted with their demonstration. 
If possible, he should have had an opportunity^ also of seeing the 
princi[)les illustrated by experiment. This is a great field ; let 
not tlie teacher be satisfied with cropping a little of the herbage 
about its borders. 

14. Chemistry.— As a matter of intelligence, the teacher should 
have acquaintance with this branch. It is comparatively a. new 



60 PAGE'S THEORY AND PRACTICE. 

science, but it is almost a science of miracles. It is beginning 
to be taught in our common schools; and that department of it 
which relates to agriculture, is destined to be of vast importance 
to the agricultural interests of our country. "Instead of conjec- 
ture, and hazard, and doubt, and experiment, as heretofore, a 
knowledge of the composition of soils, the food of plants, and 
the processes of nature in the culture and growth of crops, 
would elevate agriculture to a conspicuous rank among the exact 
sciences.-'* Teachers should not be behind in this department. 

15. Human Physiology.— The teacher should well understand 
this subject. There is an unpardonable ignorance in the commu- 
nity as to the structure of the human body, and the laws of 
health, the observance of which is, in general, a condition of 
longevity, not to say of exemption from disease. By reference 
to statistics, it has been ascertained that almost a fourth part 
of all the children that are born, die before they are one year old. 
More than one-third die before they are five years of age; and 
before the age of eight, more than one-half of all that are born 
return again to the earth ! Of those who survive, how manj' suffer 
the miseries of lingering disease, almost sighing for death to 
deliver them from the pangs of life ! There is something deplor- 
ably wrong in our philosophy of living, else the condition of man 
would not so commonly appear an exception to the truth that 
God does all things well.t Dr. Woodward, late of the Massachu- 
setts State Lunatic Hospital, says: ''From the cradle to the 
grave, we suffer punishment for the violation of the laws of health 
and life. I have no doubt that half the evils of life, and half the 
deaths that occur among mankind, arise from ignorance of these 

*Col. Y^oung. 

+ " It is the vast field of ignorance pertaining to these subjects, in which 
qnackcrij thrives and fattens. No one who knows anything of the organs and func- 
tions of the liuman system, and of the properties of those objects in nature to 
which that system is related, can hear a quack descant iipon the miraculous 
virtues of his nostrums, or can read his advertisements in the newspapers, — 
wherein, fraudulently towards man and impiously towards God, he yjromises to 
sell an ' Elixir of Life,' or ' The Balm of Immortality,' or ' Resurrection Pills,'— 
without contempt for his ignorance or detestation of his guilt. Could the quack 
administer his nostrums to the great enemy, Death, then indeed we might expect 
to live forever! "—Horace Mann. 



LITERARY QUALIFICATIONS OF THE TEACHER. 61 

natural laws; and that a thorough knowledge of them would 
diminish the sufferings incident to our present state of being in 
very nearly the same proportion." I know not how an acquaint- 
ance with these laws can be in any way so readily extended 
as through the agency of our teachers of the young. At any rate, 
the teacher himself should understand them, both for his own 
profit and the means thus afforded him of being directly useful 
in the discharge of his duties to others. I have already shown 
that he is responsible to a great extent for the bodily health of 
his pupils. A thorough knowledge of Physiology will enable 
him to meet this responsibility. 

16. Intellectual Philosophy.— This is necessary for the 
teacher. His business is with the mind. He, of all men, should 
know something of its laws and its nature. He can know some- 
thing, indeed, by observation and introspection; but he should 
also learn by careful study. His own improvement demands it, 
and his usefulness depends upon it. 

17. Moral Philosophy.— A knowledge of this may be insisted 
on for the same reasons which apply to Intellectual Philosophy. 
It is so important that the moral nature of a child be rightly 
dealt with, that he is a presumptuous man who attempts the 
work without the most careful attention to this subject. 

18. Rhetoric and Logic. —These are of great service to the 
teacher personally, as means of mental discipline and the culti- 
vation of his own taste. Even if he is never to teach them, 
they will afford him much assistance in other departments of 
instruction. He certainly should have the advantage of them. 

19. Bookkeeping.— Every teacher should know something of 
Bookkeeping, at least by single entry; and also be conversant 
with the ordinary forms of business. The profound ignorance on 
this subject' among teachers is truly astonishing.* Bookkeeping 

*A teacher, who had kept a private school, was met in a country store one day 
by one of his patrons, who paid him for the tuition of his child, asking at the same 
time for a receipt. The teacher stared vacantly at his patron. "Just give me 
a bit of paper," said the patron, "to show you've got the money." "Oh, yes, 
sir," said the teacher ; and taking a pen and paper, wrote the following: 
I have got the money. 

"J- D ." 



62 PAGE'S THEORY AND PRACTICE. 

should be a common-school study. In looking over the able 
Report of the Superintendent of Common Schools in New York, 
I notice in fifty-three counties, during the winter of 1845-6, that 
among 225,540 pupils in the common schools only 922 studied 
bookkeeping ! That is, a study, which in practical life comes home 
to the interest, not only of every merchant, but of every farmer, 
every mechanic, in short, every business man, is almost entirely 
neglected in the s(;hools,— while it is yet true that our courts of 
justice display evidences of the most deplorable ignorance in 
this important art. Some still keep their accounts on bits of 
paper; others use books, but without any system, order, or 
intelligibility, and others still mark their scores in chalk, or 
charcoal, upon the panel of the cellar- door ! 

The teacher should qualify himself not only to understand 
this subject, but to teach it in such a way that it can be easily 
comprehended by the classes in our common schools. 

20. Science of Government.— The teacher should, at least, 
be well acquainted with the history and genius of our own gov- 
ernment, the Constitution of the United States, and of his own 
State. In a republican government, it is of great importance 
that the young, who are to take an active part in public meas- 
ures as soon as they arrive at the age of twenty-one, should 
before that time be made acquainted with some of their duties 
and relations as citizens. This subject has been introduced suc- 
cessfully into many of our common schools; but whether it is to 
be matter of formal teaching or not, it is a disgrace* to a teacher 
and to his profession, to be ignorant of the provisions of the 
constitution for the mode of choosing our rulers. 

21. Drawing.— The good teacher should understand the prin- 
ciples of drawing. He should also be able to practice this art. 
It is of great consequence to him. Without neglect of other 
things, children can be very profitably taught this art in the 



*Not loug since a teacher of a public school afforded lasting amvisement for 
the hangers-on at a country grocery. He was jeered for belonging to the Whig 
party by which Mr. Tyler was brought into power. " No, no," said he, " I voted 
for Gen. Harrison, but/ never voted for John Tyler." "How did you do that ?" 
inquired a bystander. " Why I cut Tyler's name off of the ticket, to be sure !" 



LITERARY QUALIFICATIONS OF THE TEACHER. 63 

common schools. In the absence of apparatus, it is the teacher's 
only way of addressing; the eye of his pupils, in illustrating his 
teaching. Every teacher should take pains, not only to draw, 
but to draw well. 

22. Vocal Music— It is not absolutely essential though very 
desirable, to the good teacher, that he should understand music," 
theoretically and practically. Music is becoming an exercise in 
our best schools; and wherever introduced and judiciously con- 
ducted, it has been attended with pleasing results. It promotes 
good reading and speaking, by disciplining the ear to distinguish 
sounds; and it also facilitates the cultivation of the finer feelings 
of our nature. It aids very much in the government of the 
school, as its exercise gives vent to that restlessness which other- 
wise would find an escapement in boisterous noise and whisper- 
ing,— and thus it often proves a safety valve, through which a 
love of vociferation and activity may pass off in a more harmless 
and a more pleasing way. " The schoolmaster that cannot 
sing," says Martin Luther, "I would not look upon." Perhaps 
this language is too strong; but it is usually more pleasant to 
look upon a school where the schoolmaster can sing. 



I have thus gone through with a list of studies which, it seems 
to me, everyone Avho means to be a good teacher, even of a com- 
mon school, should make himself acquainted with. I would not 
condemn a teacher who, having other good qualities, and a 
thorough scholarship as far as he has gone, might lack several 
of the branches above named. There have been many good 
teachers without all this attainment; but how much better they 
might have been with it ! 

I have made this course of stud}^ as limited as I possibly could, 
taking into view the present condition and wants of our schools. 
No doubt even more will be demanded in a few years. I would 
have the present race of teachers so good, that they shall be 
looked upon by those who succeed them as their '' worthy and 
etScient predecessors.'' 



64 PAGE'S THEORY AND PRACTICE. 

I ought in this place to add that the teacher increases his 
influence, and consequently his usefulness, in proportion as he 
makes himself conversant with general knowledge. This is too 
much neglected. The teacher, by the fatigue of his employment 
and the circumstances of his life, is strongly tempted to content 
himself with what he already knows, or at best to confine him- 
self to the study of those branches which he is called upon to 
teach. He should stoutly resist this temptation. He should 
always have some course of study marked out, which he will sys- 
tematically pursue. He should, as soon as possible make himself 
acquainted generally with the subject of astronomy, the princi- 
ples of geology, in short, the various branches of natural his- 
tory. He will find one field after another open before him, and 
if he will but have the perseverance to press forward, even in the 
laborious occupation of teaching, he may make himself a well- 
informed man. 

I will venture one other suggestion. I have found it a most 
profitable thing in the promotion of my own improvement, to 
take up annually, or oftener, some particular subject to be pur- 
sued with reference to writing an extended lecture upon it. This 
gives point to the course of reading, and keeps the interest fixed. 
When the thorough investigation has been made, let the lecture 
be written from memory, embodying all the prominent points, 
and presenting them in the most striking and systematic man- 
ner. It should be done, too, with reference to accuracy and even 
elegance of style, so that the composition may be yearly im- 
proved. In this way certain subjects are forever £xed in the 
mind. One who carefully reads for a definite object, and after- 
wards writes the results from memory, never loses his hold upon 
the facts thus appropnated. 

Men of business and those in other professions are driven by 
the competition of mature minds, sharpened by experience, 
stimulated by self-interest and taxed by the demands of an 
exacting public to keep pace with all the improvements in their 
special lines, or to get ahead, if possible, by offering something 
newer or better than is offered by their competitors. Such has 



LITERARY QUALIFICATIONS OF THE TEACHER. 65 

not been the case with teachers, at least not to the same extent. 
They deal with immature minds who have little definite knowl- 
edge of their own needs, and therefore make few definite demands 
of the teacher that would force him to be progressive. Within 
recent years, however, salutary changes have been taking place. 
The demands made by public sentiment upon the school for a 
broader scholarship, and for results of a higher character, have 
led school officers to raise the legal requirements for a teacher's 
license. These requirements have been accompanied by enlarged 
facilities for professional training through Normal Schools and 
departments of pedagogy in colleges and universities. But the 
most encouraging feature is found in the voluntary associations 
formed by the teachers themselves for the promotion of their 
own culture, and for meeting the just demands of an enlightened 
public sentiment. Institutes, Associations, and Reading Circles 
are multiplying rapidly, and are found in one form or another- in 
every State and Territory in the Union. Courses of study are 
planned by committees consisting of the wisest educators in the 
various States, a profusion of professional books and periodical 
literature are brought ^ithin reach of the teachers, and thou- 
sands of earnest men and women, with quiet enthusiasm, are 
patiently, persistently, and successfully pursuing the work 
marked out for them. These agencies are lifting what was for- 
merly looked upon as a mere calling, into the dignity of a true 
profession, equal in rank and importance to kny other. The 
ideal is for each teacher to reach the high level of thorough 
professional preparation. 
T. p.— 5 



CHAPTER V. 

RIGHT VIEWS OF EDUCATION. 

Every teacher, before he begins the work of instruction, 
should have some definite idea of what constitutes an education ; 
otherwise he may work to very Uttle purpose. The painter, 
who would execute a beautiful picture, must have beforehand a 
true and clear conception of beauty in his own mind. The same 
may be said of the sculptor. That rude block of marble, unsightly 
to the eyes of other men, contains the godlike form, the symmet- 
rical proportion, the lifelike attitude of the finished and polished 
statue; and the whole is as clear to his mental eje before the 
chisel is applied as it is to his bodily vision when the work is 
completed. With this perfect ideal in the mind at the outset, 
every stroke of the chisel has its object. Not a blow is struck, 
but it is guided by consummate skill; not a chip is removed bu* 
to develop the ideal of the artist. And when the late unsightly 
marble, as if by miraculous power, stands out before the aston- 
ished spectator in all the perfection of beauty, — when it almost 
breathes and speaks,— it is to the artist but the realization of 
his own conception. 

Now let the same astonished and delighted spectator, with 
the same instruments, attempt to produce another statue from 
a similar block. On this side he scores too deep; on the other he 
leaves a protuberance; here by carelessness he encroaches upon 
the rounded limb ; there by accident he hews a chip from off the 
nose ; by want of skill one eye ill-mates the other ; one hand is 
distorted as if racked by pangs of the gout ; the other is para- 
lyzed and deathlike. Such would be his signal failure. Thus he 
might fail a thousand times. Indeed it would be matter of 
strange surprise if in a thousand efforts he should once succeed. 

Now the difference between the artist and the spectator lies 
chiefly in this,— the one knows beforehand what he means to do; 
(66) 



RIGHT VIEWS OF EDUCATION. 67 

the other works without any plan. The one has studied beauty- 
till he can see it in the rugged block; the other only knows it 
when it is presented to him. The former, having an ideal, pro- 
duces it with unerring skill; the latter, having no conception 
to guide him, brings out deformity. 

"What sculpture is to the block of marble," says Addison, 
"education is to the human soul;" and may I not add, that 
the sculptor is a type of the true educator,— while the specta- 
tor, of whom 1 have been speaking, may aptly represent too 
many false teachers who without study or forethought enter 
upon the delicate business of fashioning the human soul, blindly 
experimenting amidst the wreck of their heaven-descended mate- 
rial, maiming and marring, with scarcel}^ the possibility of final 
success,— almost with the certainty of a melancholy failure! 

In other things besides education men are wiser. They follow 
more the teachings of nature and of common sense. But in 
education, where a child has but one opportunity for mental 
training, as he can be a child but once,— where success, unerring 
success, is everything to him for time and eternity, and where 
a mistake may be most ruinous to him,— in education, men often 
forget their ordinary wisdom and providence, and commit the 
most important concerns to the most incompetent hands. "The 
prevaihng opinions," says Geo. B. Emerson, "in regard to this 
art are such as the common sense of mankind and the experience 
of centuries have shown to be absurd as to every other art and 
pursuit of civilized life. To be qualified to discourse upon our 
moral and religious duties, a man must be educated by years of 
study; to be able to administer to the body in disease, he must 
be educated by a careful examination of the body in health and 
in disease, and of the effects produced on it by external agents; 
to be able to make out a conveyance of property, or to draw 
a writ, he must be educated ; to navigate a ship, he must be edu- 
cated by years of service before the mast or on the quarter-deck ; 
to transfer the products of the earth or of art from the pro- 
ducer to the consumer, he must be educated ; to make a hat or 
a coat, he must be educated by years of apprenticeship ; to make 



68 PAGE'S THEORY AND PRACTICE. 

a plow he must be educated; to make a nail, or a. shoe for a. 
horse or an ox, he must be educated ;— but to prepare a man to 
do all these things ;— to train the body in its most tender years, 
according to the laws of health, so that it should be strong to 
resist disease ; to fill the mind with useful knowledge, to educate 
it to comprehend all the relations of society, to bring out all its 
powers into full and harmonious action; to educate the moral 
nature, in which the very sentiment of duty resides, that it may 
be fitted for an honorable and worthy fulfillment of the public 
and private offices of life; to do all this is supposed to require no 
study, no apprenticeship, no preparation ! " 

Many teachers, therefore, encouraged by this unaccountable 
indifference in the community, have entered the teacher's profes- 
sion without any idea of the responsibilities assumed or of the 
end to be secured by their labors, aside from receiving, at the 
close of their term, the compensation for their service in dollars 
and cents. And even many who have entered this profession 
with good intentions, have made the most deplorable mistakes 
from a want of an adequate idea of what constitutes an educa- 
tion. Too often has educating a child been considered simply the 
act of imparting to it a certain amount of knowledge, or of 
" carrying it through " a certain number of studies, more or less. 
Education has too frequently been held to be a cultivation of the 
intellectual to the neglect of the moral powers; and the poor 
body, too, except among savages, has had but little share in its 
privileges or benefits. In a very large number of our schools, the 
physical and the moral have both been sacrificed to the intellec- 
tual. Even some of our public speakers have dwelt upon the 
necessity of mtelhgence to the perpetuity of our free institu- 
tions, scarcely seeming to be aware that intelligence, without 
moral principle to direct and regulate it, might become the very 
engine through which evil men might effect our overthrow. Who 
has not seen that an educated man without virtue is but the 
more capable of doing evil? Who does not know that knowl- 
edge misdirected, becomes, instead of a boon to be desired, a 
bane to be deprecated? 



RIGHT VIEWS OF EDUCATION. 69 

From what has been said, I place it among the highest quali- 
fications of the teacher that he should have just views of 
education. I consider it all-important that he should have a 
well-defined object at which to aim, whenever he meets a young 
mind in the transition state. He should have an ideal of a well- 
educated human soul, tenanting a healthy, well-developed .human 
body ; an ideal which he at once and systematically labors to 
reach, as does the sculptor when he commences his work upon 
the quarried marble. "What is it to educate a human being 
aright?'' should be one of the first questions the candidate for 
the teacher's office should ask himself with the deepest serious- 
ness. I say the candidate; for this question should be settled 
if possible before he begins his work. It is a great question, and 
he may not be able to answer it in a day. Let him consult the 
dictates of his own mind, — let him consult the teachings of expe- 
rience and of wisdom, as they are to be found in the writings of 
Milton, Locke, Wyse, Cousin, Brougham, and others of the east- 
ern continent, and of Wayland, Potter, Mann, G. B. Emerson, 
Dwight, and many others of our own countrymen. Let him, 
enlightened by all this, carefully observe human nature around 
him ; consider its tendencies, its wants, and its capabilities ; and 
after a patient survey of all the truth he can discover upon the 
subject, let him come to an honest conclusion as to what is a 
correct answer to the query with which he started — " What is 
it to educate a human being aright?" 

The conclusions of the honest and intelligent inquirer after the 
truth in this matter, will be something like the following : That 
education (from e and duco, to lead forth) is development; that 
it is not instruction merely— knowledge, facts, rules— communi- 
cated by the teacher; but it is discipline, it is a waking up of the 
mind, a growth of the mind,— grow^th by a healthy assimilation 
of wholesome aliment. It is an inspiring of the mind with a 
thirst for knowledge, growth, enlargement,— and then a disci- 
plining of its powers so far that it can go on to educate itself. 
It is the arousing of the child's mind to think, without thinking 
for it; it is the awakening of its powers to observe, to remember. 



70 PAGE'S THEORY AND PRACTICE. 

to reflect, to combine. It is not a cultivation of the memory to 
the neglect of everything else; but it is a calling forth of all 
the faculties into harmonious action. If to possess facts sim- 
ply is education, then an encyclopaedia is better educated than 
a man. 

It shpuld be remarked that though knowledge is not education, 
yet there will be no education without knowledge. Knowledge is 
ever an incident of true education. No man can be properly edu- 
cated without the acquisition of knowledge; the mistake is in 
considering knowledge the end when it is either the incident or 
the means of education. The discipline of the mind, then, is the 
great thing in intellectual training ; and the question is not, how 
much have I acquired ?— but, how have my powers been strength- 
ened in the act of acquisition ? 

Nor should the intellectual be earlier cultivated than the 
moral powers of the mind. The love of moral truth should be 
as early addressed as the love of knowledge. The conscience 
should be early exercised in judging of the character of the 
pupil's own acts, and every opportunity afforded to strengthen 
it by legitimate use. Nor should the powers of the mind be 
earlier cultivated than those of the body. It is the theory of 
some, indeed, that the body should engross most of the atten- 
tion for several of the first years of childhood. This I think is 
not nature's plan. She cultivates all the powers at once, — the 
body, mind, and heart. So should the teacher do. <' Educa- 
tion," in the pertinent language of Mr. Fox,* "has reference to 
the whole man, the body, the mind, and the heart; its object, 
and, when rightly conducted, its effect is, to make him a com- 
plete creature after his kind. To his frame it would give vigor, 
activity, and beauty; to his senses, correctness and acuteness; 
to his intellect, power and truthfulness; to his heart, virtue. 
The educated man is not the gladiator, nor the scholar, nor 
the upright man alone; but a just and well-balanced combina- 
tion of all three. Just as the educated tree is neither the large 
root, nor the giant branches, nor the rich foliage, but all of them 

* Lecture before the American Institiite, 1835, 



RIGHT VIEWS OF EDUCATION. 71 

together. If you would mark the perfect man, you must not look 
for him in the circus, the university, or the church, exclusively; 
but you must look for one who has 'mens sana in corpore 
sano'—3> healthful mind in a healthful body. The being in 
whom you find this union is the only one worthy to be called 
educated. To make all men such is the object of education." 

I have dwelt thus fully on this subject, because it is so obvious 
that egregious mistakes are made in education. How many 
there are who are called "good scholars" in our schools, of 
whom we hear nothing after they go forth into the world. Their 
good scholarship consists in that which gives them no impulse to 
go on to greater attainments, by themselves. Their learning is 
either that of reception— as the sponge takes in water— or that 
of mere memory. Their education is not discipline; it kindles 
none of those desires which nothing but further progress can 
satisfy ; it imparts none of that self-reliance which nothing but 
impossibilities can ever subdue. While these are pointed out by 
their teachers as the ornaments of their schools, there are others, 
known as the heav^^ dull, "poor scholars," in no way distin- 
guished but by their stupidity,— of whom no hopes are enter- 
tained because of them nothing is expected, — who in after-life 
fairly outstrip their fellows and strangely astonish their teachers. 
Almost every teacher of fifteen years' experience has noticed this. 
Now why is it so ? There must have been somehow in such cases 
a gross misjudgment of character. Either those pupils who 
promised so much by their quickness, were educated wrong, 
and perhaps educated too much, while their teachers unwit- 
tingly and unintentionally educated their less distinguished com- 
panions far more judiciously; or else nature in such cases must 
be said to have been playing such odd pranks that legitimate 
causes could not produce their legitimate effects. We must 
charge nature as being extremely capricious, or we must allege 
that the teachers entirely misunderstood their work, failing where 
they expected most, and succeeding, as if by chance — almost 
against their will — where they expected least. I incline to the 
latter alternative; and hence I infer that there is such a thing 



72 PAGE'S THEORY AND PRACTICE. 

as teaching a mind naturally active too much— exciting it too 
much— so that it will prematurely exhaust its energies and gladly 
settle back into almost imbecility; and that there is such a thing 
as leaving the mind so much to its own resources, that without 
dazzling the beholder like the flash of the meteor when it glares 
upon the startled vision, it may be silently gathering materials 
to support the more enduring light of the morning-star which 
anon will arise in majesty and glory. 

It will be well for our youth when our teachers shall so under- 
stand human nature, and so comprehend the science and the art 
of education, that these mistakes shall seldom occur; and when 
he who tills the nobler soil of the mind, shall with as much faith 
and as much certainty as he who tills the literal field, rely upon 
the fulfillment of heaven's unchangeable law: "Whatsoever a 
man soweth, that shall he also reap." 

Too much stress cannot be laid upon right views of education. 
The child is not a block of marble to be carved, not a formless 
mass of wax to be molded, not a blank canvas upon which the 
ideal of the artist is to be placed. Each of these views regards 
the child as something entirely passive, and the end of his edu- 
cation as the realization of an ideal imposed upon him from 
without. Such views make education a mechanical process, the 
product being variable according to the will or the skill of the 
educator. The child is not a passive subject, but an active 
agent in the processes of his own culture ; the ideal toward the 
realization of whicli his education should proceed is not imposed 
from without, but is germinal within, and the process is not and 
cannot be, mechanical; it must, in the nature of the case, be 
organic. In every organic process there is a natural and neces- 
sary order of development which cannot be essentially varied, 
nor can the process be materially hastened, without danger to the 
well-being of the unfolding life within. 

The work of the teacher, especially the teacher in the common 
schools, is to guard this growth process, to remove obstacles to 
its symmetrical progress, and to supply the appropriate stimu- 
lus in such quantity, at such time, and in such manner as will 



RIGHT VIEWS OF EDUCATION. 73 

promote the healthy and properly related growth of all the germs 
of power in the child's nature. 

There is a growing tendency to demand of the public schools 
the thorough preparation of the boys and girls for some trade or 
other occupation, and new subjects are added to the course of 
study with this purpose in view. In the nature of the common 
school branches they are adapted to aid in this preparation, 
and the teacher may not forget nor neglect this use of them ; but 
from his standpoint he should see their chief function to be service 
as instruments in the educating process ; that is, the development 
of intellectual and moral power in the boys and girls. It is the 
teacher's mission to send them from his hand, not as profession- 
als, artists, or artisans; but as young persons with intellect 
sharpened and disciplined to consecutive and effective thought ; 
with judgment trained to quick perception of the right; with 
conscience sensitive and prompt to respond to the call of duty ; 
and with will trained for the firm guidance of conduct in accord- 
ance with the highest ideals of manhood and womanhood. It is 
upon such a foundation that special preparation for an occupa- 
tion should be built. A calling or a profession without such a 
foundation is no more safe than a house that is built upon 
the sand. 



CHAPTER VI. 

RIGHT MODES OF TEACHING. 

From what has been said of Education, it is very obvious that 
it is no small thing to be a successful teacher. It is admitted by 
all that the teacher should be apt to teach. He cannot be use- 
ful without this. He may have an unimpeachable character; he 
may ha ve the most liberal and thorough literary acquirements ; he 
may deeply feel his responsibility, and yet after all he may fail to 
teach successfully. 

Aptness to teach has been said to be a native endowment, a 
sort of instinct, and therefore incapable of being improved by 
experience or instruction, — an instinct such as that which guides 
the robin, though hatched in an oven, to build a perfect nest like 
that of its parent, without ever having seen one. I am of the 
opinion that such instincts in men are rare; but that.aptness to 
teach, like aptness to do any thing else, is usually an acquired 
pow er, based upon a correct knowledge of what is to be done and 
some accurate estimate of the fitness of the means used for the 
end. If there are exceptions to this, they are very uncommon; 
and the safer way, therefore, for the majority of teachers, is, 
to study carefully the rationale of their processes, and to rely 
rather upon sound and philosophical principles in their teaching, 
than upon a very doubtful intuition. 

One of the most common errors into which young teachers fall 
(and some old ones too), is that of misjudging of the degree 
of assistance which the young scholar needs in the pursuit of 
learning. There are a few who forget the difficulties which impeded 
their own perception of new truths when learners, and therefore 
have no sympathy with the perplexities which surround the chil- 
dren under their charge when they encounter like difficulties. 
They refuse to lend a helping hand, even w^here it is needed, and 
(74) 



RIGHT MODES OF TEACHING. 75 

by making light of the child's doubts, perhaps sneering at his 
unsuccessful struggles, they dishearten him so far that imaginary 
obstacles become insurmountable, and he gives up in despair. 
But a far more numerous class tend toward the other extreme. 
From a mistaken kindness, or a mistaken estimate of the child's 
ability, or both, they are disposed to do quite too much for him, 
and thus they diminish his power to help himself. The child that 
is constantly dandled upon the lap of its nurse, and borne in her 
arms to whatever point it may desire to go, does not soon learn 
to walk; and when it at length makes the attempt, it moves not 
with the firm tread of him who was early taught to use his own 
limbs. There is a great deal of literary dandling practiced in our 
schools; and as a consequence, a great many of our children are 
mere sickly nurslings, relying upon leading strings while in the 
school, and falling, for very weakness, just as soon as the support- 
ing hand is withdrawn. This evil is so common, and in some 
instances so monstrous,* that I shall be pardoned if I dwell upon 
it a little more fully. 

In illustrating this subject, I must mention two processes 
of teaching, not indeed exactly opposite to each other, though 
widely different, — into one or both of which many of our teachers 
are very liable to fall. I shall, for the sake of a name, designate 
the former as the 

SECTION I.— POURING-IN PROCESS. 

This consists in lecturingto a class of children upon every sub- 
ject which occurs to the teacher, it being his chief aim to bring- 
before them as man^^ facts in a limited time as possible. It is as 
if he should provide himself with a basket of sweetmeats, and 
every time he should come within reach of a child, should seize 
him, and compel him to swallow, regardless of the condition of 

* Not long since I visited a school, where the teacher with much self-compla- 
cency requested me to examine the writing of the children. It was indeed very- 
fair. But when I drew from him the fact that he first wrote each page himself 
with a lead pencil, and only required his scholars to black his marks over with ink^ 
and that with unremitting labor he did this week after week for all tlie writers in 
his school, I knew not which most to wonder at, the docility of the children or the 
weakness of the teacher. The writing ceased to be wonderful. 



76 PAGE'S THEORY AND PRACTICE. 

his stomach, whatever trash he shoukl happen first to force into 
his mouth. Children are indeed fond of sweetmeats, but they do 
not hke to have them administered, — and every physiologist 
knows there is such a thing as eating enough even of an agreeable 
thing to make one sick, and thus produce loathing forever after. 
Now many teachers are just such misguided caterers for the 
mind. They are ready to seize upon the victims of their kindness, 
iorce open their mental gullets, and pour in, without mercy 
and without discretion, whatever sweet thiug they may have at 
hand, even though they surfeit and nauseate the poor suf- 
ferer. The mind, by this process, becomes a mere passive recip- 
ient, taking in without much resistance whatever is presented till 
it is full. 

"A passive recipient! " said one to his friend, "what is a pas- 
sive recipient?^' "A passive recipient," replied his friend, "is a 
two-gallon jug. It holds just two gallons, and as it is made of 
potter's ware, it can never hold but just two gallons." This is 
not an unfit illustration of what I mean by making the mind 
a passive recipient. Whenever the teacher does not first excite 
inquiry, first prepare the mind by waking it up to a desire to 
know, and if possible to find out by itself, but proceeds to think 
for the child, and to give him the results, before they are desired, 
or before they have been sought for, — he makes the mind of the 
child a two-gallon jug, into which he may pour just two gallons, 
but no more. And if day after day he should continue to pour 
in, day after day he may expect that what he pours in will all 
run over. The mind, so far as retention is concerned, will act 
like the jug; that is, a part of what is poured in to-day, will be 
diluted by a part of that which is forced in to-morrow, and that 
again will be partially displaced and partially mingled with the 
next day's pouring, till at length there will be nothing character- 
istic left. But aside from retention, there is a great difference 
between the jug and the mind. The former is inert material, and 
may be as good a jug after such use as before. But the mind 
suffers by every unsuccessful effort to retain. 

This process of lecturing children into imbecility is altogether 



EIGHT MODES OF TEACHING. 77 

too frequently practiced; and it is to be hoped, that intelligent 
teachers will pause and inquire before they pursue it further. 

The other process to which I wish to call attention, is that 
which, for the sake of distinguishing it from the first, I shall 
denominate the 

SECTION 11.— I)KAWING-OUT PROCESS. 

This consists in asking what the lawyers call leading questions. 
It is practiced, usually, whenever the teacher desires to help 
along the pupil. "John," says the teacher when conducting a 
recitation in Long Division, "John, what is the number to be 
divided called?" John hesitates. "Is it the dividend?" says 
the teacher. "Yes, sir — the dividend." "Well, John, what is 
tha,t which is left after dividing called?— the remainder— is it?" 
" Yes, sir." A visitor now enters the room, and the teacher desires 
to show off John's talents. " Well, John, of what denomination 
is the remainder? " 

John looks upon the floor. 

" Isn't it alwa^^s the same as the dividend, John? " 

" Yes, sir." 

"Very well, John," says the teacher, soothingly, "what 
denomination is this dividend? " pointing to the work upon the 
board. " Dollars, is it not ? " 

"Yes, sir; dollars." 

" Very well ; now what is this remainder ? " 

John hesitates. • 

" Why dollars, too, isn't it? " says the teacher. 

"Oh, yes, sir, dollars!'' says John, energetically, while the 
teacher complacently looks at the visitor to see if he has noticed 
how correctly John has answered ! 

A class is called to be examined in History. They have com- 
mitted the text-book to memory, that is, they have learned the 
words. They go on finely for a time. At length one hesitates. 
The teacher adroitly asks a question in the language of the text. 
Thus: ''Early in the morning, on the 11th of September, what 
did the whole British army do?'' The pupil, thus timely reas- 



78 PAGE'S THEORY AND PRACTICE. 

snred, proceeds: ^^ Early in the morning, on the 11th of Sep- 
tember, the whole British army, drawn up in two divisions, 
commenced the expected assault." Here again she pauses. The 
teacher proceeds to inquire: '^ Well,— 'Agreeably to the plan of 
Howe, the right wing ' did what ? " 

Pupil. ^' Agreeably to the plan of Howe, the right wing''— 

Teacher. '' The right wing, commanded by whom ? " 

Pupil. "Oh! ^Agreeably to the plan of Howe, the right 
wing, commanded by' Knyphausen, made a feint of crossing the 
Brandywine at Chad's Ford," etc. 

This is a very common way of helping a dull pupil out of a 
difficulty ; and I have seen it done so adroitly, that a company 
of visitors would agree that it was wonderful to see how thor- 
oughly the children had been instructed. 

I may further illustrate this drawing-out process, by describing 
an occurrence, which, in company with a friend and fellow-laborer, 
I once witnessed. A teacher whose school we visited, called upon 
the class in Colburn's First Lessons. They rose, and in single file 
marched to the usual place, with their books in hand, and stood 
erect. It was a very good-looking class. 

''Where do you begin?" said the teacher, taking the book. 

Pupils. " On the 80th page, 3d question." 

Teacher. "Read it, Charles." 

Charles. [Reads.) " A man being asked how many sheep he 
had, said that he had them in two pastures; in one pasture he 
had eight ; that three-fourths of these were just one-third of what 
he had in the other. How many were there in the other?" 

Teacher. "Well, Charles, you must first get one-fourth of 
eight, must you not?" 

Charles. "Yes, sir." 

Teacher. " Well, one-fourth of eight is two, isn't it?" 

Charles. " Yes, sir; one-fourth of eight is two." 

Teacher. "Well, then, three-fourths will be three times two, 
won't it?" 

Charles. "Yes, sir!" 

Teacher. " Well, three times two are six, eh ? " 



RIGHT MODES OF TEACHING. 79 

Charles, "Yes, sir!" 

Teacher. " Very well." (A pause.) " Now the book says that 
this six is just one-third of what he had in the other pasture, 
don't it?" 

Charles. " Yes, sir ! " 

Teacher. '' Then if six is one-third, three-thirds will be — three 
times six, won't it? " 

Charles. ' ' Yes, sir ! ' ' 

Teacher. "And three times six are— eighteen, ain't it? " 

Charles. ' ' Yes , sir ! " 

Teacher. "Then he had eighteen sheep in the other pasture, 
had he?" 

Charles. "Yes, sir!" 

Teacher. " Next, take the next one." 

At this point I interposed, and asked the teacher if he would 
request Charles to ^o through it alone. "Oh, yes," said the 
teacher, " Charles, you may do it again." Charles again read the 
question, and— looked up. " Well," said the teacher, " Y'ou must 
first get one-fourth of eight, mustn't you?" "Y"es, sir." "And 
one-fourth of eight is two, isn't it?" "Yes, sir." And so the 
process went on as before till the final eighteen sheep were drawn 
out as before. The teacher now looked round, with an air which 
seemed to say, " Now I suppose you are satisfied." 

"Shall / ask Charles to do it again?" said I. The teacher 
assented. Charles again read the question, and again— looked 
up. I waited, and he waited ;— but the teacher could not wait. 
" Why, Charles," said he impatiently; "you want one-fourth of 
eight, don't you?" "Yes, sir," said Charles, promptly ; and I 
thought best not to insist further at this time upon a repetition 
of "yes, sir,'^ and the class were allowed to proceed in their own 
way. 

This is, indeed, an extreme case, and yet it is but a fair sample 
of that teacher's method of stupefying mind. This habit of 
assisting the pupil to some extent, is, however, a very common 
one, and as deleterious to mind as it is common. The teacher 
should at once abandon this practice, and require the scholar to 



80 PAGE'S THEORY AND PRACTICE. 

do the talking at recitation. I need hardly suggest that such a 
course of extraction at recitation, aside from the waste of time 
by both parties, and the waste of strength by the teacher, has a 
direct tendency to make the scholar miserably superficial. For 
why should he study, if he knows from constant experience that 
the teacher, by a leading question, will relieve him from all 
embarrassment? It has often been remarked, that '' the teacher 
makes the school." Perhaps in no way can he more effectually 
make an inefficient school, than by this drawing-out process. 

I look upon the two processes just described, as very promi- 
nent and prevalent faults in our modern teaching; and if by 
describing them thus fully, I shall induce any to set a guard 
upon their practice in this particular, I shall feel amply rewarded. 

SECTION III.— THE MORE EXCELLENT WAY. 

It is always a very difficult question for the teacher to settle, 
" How far shall I help the pupil, and how far shall the pupil be 
required to help himself?" The teaching of nature would seem 
to indicate that the pupil should be taught mainly to depend 
on his own resources. This, too, I think is the teaching of 
common sense. Whatever is learned should be so thoroughly 
learned, that the next and higher step may be comparatively 
easy. And the teacher should always inquire, when he is about 
to dismiss one subject, whether the class understand it so well 
that they can go on to the next. He may, indeed, sometimes 
give a word of suggestion during the preparation of a lesson, 
and, by a seasonable hint, save the scholar the needless loss of 
much time. But it is a very great evil if the pupils acquire the 
habit of running to the teacher as soon as a slight difficulty pre- 
sents itself, to request him to remove it. Some teachers, when 
this happens, will send the scholar to his seat with a reproof 
perhaps, while others, with a mistaken kindness, will answer the 
question or solve the problem themselves, as the shortest way to 
get rid of it. Both these courses are, in general, wrong. The 
inquirer should never be frowned upon; this may discourage him. 
He should not be relieved from labor, as this will diminish his 



RIGHT MODES OF TEACHING. 81 

self-reliance without enligliteniiig- him ; for whatever is done for 
a scholar without his having studied closely upon it himself, 
makes but a feeble impression upon him, and is soon forgotten. 
The true way is, neither to discourage inquiry nor answer the 
question. Converse with the scholar a little as to the principles 
involved in the question; refer him to principles which he has 
before learned, or has now lost sight of; perhaps call his atten- 
tion to some rule or expla.nation before given to the class; go 
just so far as to enlighten him a little, and put him on the scent, 
then leave him to achieve the victory himself. There is a great 
satisfaction in discovering a difficult thing for one's self, — and 
the teacher does the scholar a lasting injury who takes this 
pleasure from him. The teacher should be simply suggestive, 
but should never take the glory of a victory from the scholar by 
doing his work for him, at least, not until he has given it a 
thorough trial himself. 

The skill of the teacher, then, will be best manifested, if he 
can contrive to awaken such a. spirit in the pupil, that he shall 
be very unwilling to be assisted ; if he can kindle up such a zeal, 
that the pupil will prefer to try again and again, before he will 
consent that the teacher shall interpose. I shall never forget a 
class of boys, some fourteen or fifteen years of age, who in the 
study of algebra had imbibed this spirit. A difficult question 
had been before the class a day or two, when I suggested giving 
them some assistance. '• Not to-day, sir,'' was the spontaneous 
exclamation of nearly every one. Nor shall I forget the expres- 
sion that beamed from the countenance of one of them, when 
elated with his success, he forgot the proprieties of the school 
and audibly exclaimed, "/'re got it! I've got it!'' It was a 
great day for him ; he felt, as he never before had felt, his own 
might. Nor was it less gratifying to me to find that his fellows 
were still unwilling to know his method of solution. The next 
day a large number brought a solution of their own, each show- 
ing evidence of originality. A class that has once attained to a 
feeling like this, will go on to educate themselves, when they shall 
have left the school and the living teacher. 
T. p.— 6 



82 PAGE'S THEORY AND PRACTICE. 

As to the communication of knowledge, aside from that imme- 
diately connected with school studies, there is a more excellent 
way than that of pouring it in by the process already described. 
It is but just that 1 should give a specimen of the method of 
doing this. I shall now proceed to do so, under the head of 

SECTION IV.— WAKING UP MIND. 

The teacher of any experience knows, that if he will excite a 
deep and profitable interest in his school, he must teach many 
things besides book-studies. In our- common schools, there will 
always be a company of small children, wdio, not yet having 
learned to read understandingly, will have no means of interest- 
ing themselves, and must depend mainly upon the teacher for the 
interest they take in the school. This to them is perhaps the 
most critical period of their lives. Whatever impression is now 
made upon them will be enduring. If there they become dis- 
gusted with the dullness and confinement of school, and associate 
the idea of pain and repulsiveness with that of learning, who can 
describe the injury done to their minds? If, on the other hand, 
the teacher is really skillful, and excites in them a spirit of 
inquiry, and leads them in suitable ways to observe, to think, 
and to feel that the school is a happy place even foi- children, it 
is one great point gained. 

I may suggest here, then, that it would be well to set apart a 
few minutes once a day for a general exercise in the school, when 
it should be required of all to lay by their studies, assume an 
erect attitude, and give their undivided attention to whatever 
the teacher may bring before them. Such a course would have 
its physiological advantages. It would relieve the minds of all 
for a few minutes. The erect attitude is a healthful one. It 
w^ould also serve as a short respite from duty, and thus refresh 
the older scholars for study. I may further add, that, for the 
benefit of these small children, every general exercise should 
be conducted with reference to them and such topics should be 
introduced as they can understand. 

It is the purpose of the following remarks to give a sped- 



• RIGHT MODES OF TEACHING. 83 

men of the manner of conducting such exercises, for a few days, 
^vith reference to waking up mind in the school and also in the 
district. 

Let us suppose that the teacher has promised that on the next 
day, at ten minutes past ten o'clock, he shall request the whole 
school to give their attention five minutes, while he shall bring 
something there to which he shall call the attention, especially 
of the little boys and girls under seven j^ears of age. This very 
announcement will excite an interest both in school and at home; 
and when the children come in the morning, they will be more 
wakeful than usual till the fixed time arrives. It is very impor- 
tant that this time should be fixed, and that the utmost punctu- 
ality should be observed, both as to the beginning and ending of 
the exercise at the precise time. 

The teacher, it should be supposed, has not made such an 
announcement without considering what he can do when the time 
arrives. He should have a well digested plan of operation, and 
one which he knows beforehand that he can successfully execute. 

Let us suppose that in preparing for this exercise he looks 
about him to find some object which he can make his text ; and 
that he finds upon his study table an ear of corn. He thinks 
carefully what he can do with it, and then with a smile of satis- 
faction he puts it in his pocket for the '' general exercise." 

In the morning he goes through the accustomed duties of the 
first hour, perhaps more cheerfull}^ than usual, because he finds 
there is more of animation and wakefulness in the school. At the 
precise time, he gives the signal agreed upon, and all the pupils 
drop their studies and sit erect. When there is perfect silence and 
strict attention by all, he takes from his pocket the ear of corn, 
and in silence holds it up before the school. The children smile, 
for it is a familiar object ; and they probably did not suspect they 
were to be fed with corn. 

Teacher. "Now, children," addressing himself to the young- 
est, " I am going to ask you only one question to-day about this 
ear of corn. If you can answer it I shall be very glad ; if the little 
boys and girls upon the front seat cannot give the answer, I will 



84 PAGE'S THEORY AND PRACTICE. 

let those in the next seat tvj; and so on till all have tried, unless 
our time should expire before the right answer is given. I shall 
not be surprised if none of you give the answer lam thinking of. 
As soon as I ask the (juestion, those who are under seven years 
old, that think they can give an answer, may raise their hand. 
What is this ear of corn for?" 

Several of the children raise their hands, and the teacher points 
to one after another in order, and they rise and give their answers. 

Mary. " It is to feed the geese with." 

John. '' Yes, and the hens too, and the pigs." 

Sarah. "■ My father gives corn to the cows." 

By this time the hands of the youngest scholars are all down, 
for having been taken a little by surprise, their knowledge is 
exhausted. So the teacher says that those between seven and 
ten years of age may raise their hands. Several instantly appear. 
The teacher again indicates, by pointing, those who may give the 
answ-er. 

Charles. ''My father gives corn to the horses when the oats 
are all gone." 

Daniel. '' We give it to the oxen and cows, and we fat the hogs 
upon corn." 

Laura. "It is good to eat. They shell it from the cobs and 
send it to mill, and it is ground into meal. They make bread of 
the meal, and we eat it." 

This last pupil has looked a Uttle further into domestic economy 
than those who answ^ered before her. But, by this time, perhaps 
before, the five minutes have beennearlyexpended,andyet several 
hands are up, and the faces of several are beaming with eagerness 
to tell their thoughts. Let the teacher then say, " We will have 
no more answers to-day. You may think of this matter till 
to-morrow, and then I will let you try again. I am sorry to tell 
you that none of you have mentioned the use I was thinking of^ 
though I confess I expected it every minute. I shall not be sur- 
prised if no one of you give this answer to-morrow. I shall now 
put the ear of corn in my desk, and no one of you must speak 
to me about it till to-morrow. Y^ou may now take your studies." 



RIGHT MODES OF TEACHING. 85 

The children now breathe more freely, while the older ones take 
their studies, and the next class is called. In order to success, it 
is absolutely necessary that the teacher should positively refuse 
to hold any conversation with the children on the subject till the 
next time for "general exercise." 

During- the remainder of the forenoon the teacher will very 
likely ojbserve some signs of thoughtfulness on the part of those 
little children who have been habitually dull before. And perhaps 
8ome child, eager to impart a new discovery, will seek an oppor- 
tunity to make it known during the forenoon. " Wait till to-mor- 
row," should be the teacher's only reply. 

Now, let us follow these children as they are dismissed, while 
they bend their steps toward home. They cluster together in 
groups as they go down the hill, and t\\Qj seem to be earnestly 
engaged in conversation. 

"I don't believe it has any other use," says John. 

<' Oh, yes it has," says Susan; " our teacher would not say so 
if it had not. Besides, did you not see what a knowing look he 
had, when he drew up his brow and said heguessedwecouldn't find 
it out?" "Well, I mean to ask my mother," says little Mary; 
^' I guess she can tell." 

By-and-by as they pass a field of corn, Samuel sees a squirrel 
running across the street, with both his cheeks distended with 
"plunder.^^ At home, too, the ear of corn is made the subject of 
conversation. " What is an ear of corn for, mother?" says little 
Mary, as soon as they have taken a seat at the dinner-table. 

Mother. "An ear of corn, child? ^'hj, don't you know? It is 
to feed the fowls, and the pigs, and the cattle; and we make bread 
of it too" 

Mary. " Yes, we told all that, but the teacher says that is not 
all." 

Mother. ' ' The teacher ? ' - 

Mary. " Yes, ma'am ; the teacher had an ear of corn at school, 
and he asked us what it was for; and after we had told him every- 
thing we could think of, he said there was another thing still. 
Now, /want to find out so that I can tell him." 



86 PAGE'S THEORY AND PRACTICE. 

The consequence of this would be that the family, father, 
mother, and older brothers and sisters, would resolve themselves 
into a committee of the whole on the ear of corn. The same, or 
something like this, would be true in other families in the district; 
and by the next morning, several children would have something 
further to communicate on the subject. The hour would this 
day be awaited with great interest, and the first signal would 
produce perfect silence. 

The teacher now takes the ear of corn from the desk, and dis- 
plays it before the school; and quite a number of hands are 
instantly raised as if eager to be the first to tell what other use 
they have discovered for it. 

The teacher now says pleasantly, '' The use I am thinking of, 
you have all observed, I have no doubt; it is a very important 
use, indeed ; but as it is a little out of the common course, I shall 
not be surprised if you cannot give it. However, you may try." 

"It is good to boil!''* says little Susan, almost springing 
from the floor as she speaks. 

"And it is for squirrels to eat," says little Samuel. "I saw 
one carry away a whole mouthful yesterday from the cornfield." 

Others still mention other uses, which they have observed. 
They mention other animals which feed upon it, or other modes 
of cooking it. The older pupils begin to be interested, and they 
add to the list of uses named. Perhaps, however, none will name 
the one the teacher has in his own mind ; he should cordially wel- 



*The children themselves will be sure to find some new answers to such ques- 
tions as the above. In giving in substance this lecture to a gathering of teachers 
in the autumn of 1845, in one of the busy villages of New York, where also the 
pupils of one of the district schools were present by invitation, I had described 
a process similar to that which has been dwelt upon above. I had given the sup- 
posed answers for the first day, and had described the children as pressing the 
question at home. When I had proceeded as far as to take up the ear of corn 
the second day, and had spoken of the possibility that the true answer to the ques- 
tion might not be given, I turned almost instinctively to the class of children at 
my right, saying, ''Now what is the ear of corn for ? " A little boy some six years 
of age, who had swallowed every Avord, and whose face glowed as if there was not 
room enough for his soul within him, "bounded upon his feet, and forgetting the 
publicity of the place, and the gravity of the chairman of the meeting, clapping 
his hands forcibly together, "It's to pop! " he exclaimed emphatically, very much 
to the amusement of the audience. His mind had been waked up. 



RIGHT MODES OF TEACHING. 87 

come the answer if perchance it is given ; if none siiould give it, 
he may do as he thinks best about giving it himself on this 
occasion. Perhaps if there is time he may do so,— after the 
following manner. 

"I have told yon that the answer I was seeking was a very 
simple one; it is something you have all observed, and you may 
be a little disappointed when I tell you. The use I have been 
thinking of for the ear of corn is this :—It is to plant. It is for 
seed, to propagate that species of plant called corn." Here the 
children may look disappointed, as much as to say, " we knew 
that before." 

The teacher continues : "And this is a very important use for 
the corn; for if for one year none should be planted, and all 
the ears that grew the year before should be consumed, we should 
have no more corn. This, then, was the great primary design 
of the corn, the other uses you have named were merely second- 
ary. But I mean to make something more of my ear of corn. 
My next question is :— Do other plants have seeds ? " * 

Here is a new field of inquiry. Many hands are instantly 
raised; but as the five minutes by this time have passed, leave 
them to answer at the next time. 

'■^ Have other plants seeds? ^^ the children begin to inquire in 
their own minds, and each begins to think over a list of such 
plants as he is familiar with. When they are dismissed, they 
look on the way home at the plants by the roadside, and when 
they reach home, they run to the garden. At the table they 
inquire of their parents, or their brothers and sisters. 

At the next exercise, they will have more than they can tell in 
five minutes as the results of their own observation and research. 
When enough has been said by the children as to the plants 
which have seeds, the next question may be: Do all plants 
HAVE seeds? This question will lead to much inquiry at home 
wherever botany is not well understood. There are many who 
are not aware that all plants have seeds. Very likely the ferns 
(common brakes) will be noticed by the children themselves. 

* Plant is here used in the popular sense. 



88 PAGE'S THEORY AND PBACTICE. 

They may also name several other plants which do not exhibit 
their apparatus for seed-bearing very conspicuously. This will 
prepare the way for the teacher to impart a little information. 
Nor is there any harm in his doing so, whenever he is satisfied 
that the mind has been suitably exercised. The mind is no longer 
a ''passive recipient;" and he may be sure that by inquiry it 
has increased its capacity to contain, and nnj fact which now 
answers inquiry will be most carefully stored up. 

The next question may be:— Do trees have seeds? As the 
children next go out, their eyes are directed to the trees above 
them. The fruit-trees, the walnut, the oak, and perhaps the pine 
will be selected as those which have seeds. They will, however, 
mention quite a number which do not, or which, they think do 
not have seeds. Among these may be the ehn, the birch, and 
the Lombardy poplar. After hearing their opinions, and the 
results of their observations, take one of their exceptions, as the 
subject of the next question: Does the elm have seeds'?^ This 
will narrow their inquiries down to a specific case, and every elm 
in the district will be inquired of as to its testimonj'on this point. 

If the children can any of them collect and give the truth in 
the matter, so much the better; but if they, after inquiring of 
their parents and their grandparents, as I have known a whole 
school to do, come back insisting that the elm has no seeds; 
after hearing their reasons for their belief, and perhaps the opin- 
ions of their parents, you may promise to tell them something 
about it at the next exercise. This will again awaken expecta- 
tion, not only among the children but among the parents. All 
will wish to know what you have to bring out. 

Great care should be taken not to throw any disparagement 
upon the opinions of parents. Perhaps, after giving the signal 
for attention, you may proceed as follows:— 

''Has the elm-tree any seeds? Perhaps, children, you may 
recollect after the cold winter has passed away, that, along in 



* It is a very common opinion in the country that the elm has no seeds. I 
once knew a man who grew gray under the shade of a large elm, and who insisted 
that it never bore any seeds. 



RIGHT MODES OF TEACHING. 89 

the latter part of March or the first of April, we sometimes have 
a warm, sunny day. The birds perhaps appear and begin to sing 
a little, and as you look up to the elm, you notice that its buds 
seem to swell, and you think it is going to put out its leaves. 
Everybody says we are going to have an early spring. But after 
tliis the cold frosty nights and windy days come on again, and 
then you think the leaves cannot come out so early. Now, if you 
observe carefully, the leaves do not come out till about the 20th 
of May or perhaps the first of June. Did you ever see anything 
like what I have described?" 

"Yes, sir, we remember that." 

" Well, the next time you see the buds begin to open, just break 
off a twig of a good large tree, and you will find they are not 
the leaf-buds. But if you will watch them carefully for two or 
three weeks, you will find that each bud will put out some beauti- 
ful little fiowers, brightly colored, and slightly fragrant. If you 
will still continue to w^atch them, you will find as the fiowers fall 
off, that seed-vessels are formed, shaped very much like the pars- 
nip seed. These will grow larger and larger every day, and by- 
and-by they will turn brown, and look as if they were ripe. Just 
about this time the leaves will come out; and soon after, these 
seeds, during some windy day or night, will all fall off. The 
ground will be covered with thousands of them. Perhaps you 
have seen this." 

"Yes, sir," says John, "Grandpa calls that elm-dust.^' 

"Perhaps next year 3^ou can watch this, and ask your parents 
to examine it with you. But the five minutes are ended." 

Now, information thus communicated will never be forgotten. 
The mind, having been put upon the stretch, is no longer a pas- 
sive recipient. 

The next question :— How are seeds disseminated ? — (of 
course explaining the term — '' disseminated).'^ 

This will bring in a fund of information from the pupils. 
They will mention that the thistle seed flies and so does the seed 
of the milkweed; that the burrs of the burdock, and some other 
seeds are provided with hooks by which they attach themselves 



90 PAGE'S THEORY AND PRACTICE. 

to the hair of animals or the clothing of men, and ride away to 
their resting-place, which may be a hundred miles off. Some fall 
into the water and sail away to another shore. Some, hke the 
seed of the touch-me-not, are thrown at a distance like the burst- 
ing of the elastic pericarp ; others, as nuts and acorns, are carried 
by squirrels, and buried beneath the leaves. These facts would 
mostly be noticed by children, when once put upon observation. 

Next question .—Are plants propagated in any other way? 

This question would call their attention to the various means 
of natural and artificial propagation, by layers, by offsets, by 
suckers, by grafting, by inoculation or budding, etc. 

Again: — Ha ye any plants more ways than one of natural 
propagation ? Some have one way only, by seeds, as the annual 
plants; some have two,— by seeds, and by roots, as the potato; 
some have three,— as the tiger-lily, by side-bulbs from the roots, 
by stalk-bulbs, and by the seeds. This can be extended indefi- 
nitely. 

SECTION v.— REMARKS. 

Let it be remembered that the above has been given simply as 
a specimen of what could easily be done by an ingenious teacher, 
with as common a thing as an ear of corn for the text. Any 
other thing would answer as well. A chip, a tooth or a bone of 
an animal, a piece of iron, a feather, or any other object, could 
be made the text for adroitly bringing in the uses of wood, the 
food and habits of animals, the use and comparative value of 
metals, the covering of birds, their migration, the covering of 
animals, etc., etc. Let the teacher but think what department 
he will dwell upon, and then he can easily select his text; and 
if he has any tact, he can keep the children constantly upon 
inquiry and observation. 

The advantages of the above course over simpl}^ lecturing to 
them on certain subjects, that is, over the pouring-in process, are 
many and great. Some of the most obvious I will briefly state : 

1. It immediately puts the minds of the children into a state 
of vigorous activity.— They feel that they are not longer passive 
recipients. They are incited to discover and ascertain for them- 



RIGHT MODES OF TEACHING. 91 

selves. They are, therefore, profitably employed both in and out 
of school, and as a consequence are more easily governed. A 
habit of observation is cultivated in them ; and what an advan- 
tage is this for a child ! It is almost unnecessary to remark that 
many people go through the world without seeing half the 
objects which are brought within their reach. It would be the 
same to them if their ej^es were half the time closed. If they 
travel through a country presenting the most beautiful scenery, 
or the most interesting geological features, they see nothing. 
They grow up among all the wonders of God's works, amid all 
the displays of his wisdom, of his design, to no purpose. They 
study none of the plans of nature; and by all the millions of 
arrangements which God has made, to delight the eye, to gratify 
the taste, to excite the emotions of pleasure instead of pain, they 
are neither the happier nor the wiser. What a blessing, then, it 
is to the child, to put his mind upon inquiry; to open his eyes 
to observe what his creator intended his intelligent creatures 
should behold, of his goodness, his wisdom, his power. And how 
far superior is he who teaches a child to see for himself, and to 
think for himself, to him who sees and thinks for the child, and 
thus practically invites the pupil to close his own eyes and grope 
in darkness through the instructive journey of life. 

2. It is of great service to the parents in the district to have 
this waking-up process in operation. — Our children are some- 
times our best teachers. Parents are apt to grow rusty in their 
acquirements, and it is no doubt one of the designs of Providence 
that the inquisitiveness of childhood should preserve them from 
sinking into mental inactivity. Who can hear the inquiries of his 
ow^n child after knowledge, without a desire to supply his wants? 
Now it is right for the teacher to use this instrumentality to 
wake up mind in his district. Parents, by the course I have 
recommended, very soon become interested in these daily ques- 
tions of the teacher; and they are often as eager to know what 
is the next question as the children are to report it. This course 
then, will supply profitable topics of conversation at the fireside, 
and very likely will encourage also the pursuit of useful reading. 



92 PAGE'S THEORY AND PRACTICE. 

It will moreover soon awaken a deeper interest in the school on 
the part of the parents. They will begin to inquire of one an- 
other as to this new measure; and when Xhey find by conference 
that the feeling in this matter is becoming general, they will 
desire to visit the school to witness this as well as the other 
operations of the teacher. This will secure parental cooperation, 
and thus in every way the influence of the school will be height- 
ened. It is no small thing for a teacher to enlist the interest of 
his patrons in the success of his school ; and this is the most hap- 
pily done, when it is achieved through the medium of the pupils 
themselves. 

3. Itr wakes up the teachers own mi/jd.— This is by no means 
the least important point to be gained. The teacher, by the very 
nature of his employment, by daily confinement in an unhealthy 
atmosphere, by teaching over and over again that with which 
he is quite familiar, by boarding with people who ai-e inclined to 
be social, and by the fatigue and languor with which he finds 
himself oppressed every night, is strongly tempted to neglect his 
own improvement. There are but few who rise above this accu- 
mulation of impediments, and go on in spite of them to eminence 
in the profession. A large proportion of all who teach, rely upon 
the attainments with which they commence; and in the course 
of two or three years, finding themselves behind the age, they 
abandon the employment. This is very natural. Any man who 
treads in a beaten track, like a horse in a mill, must become 
w^eary, however valuable the product may be which he grinds 
out. It is essential that he should keep his own interest awake 
by some exercise of his ingenuity, and that he should compel him- 
self to be industrious by undertaking that which will absolutely 
demand study. The above process will do this; and while he may 
have the pleasure of seeing the growth of his pupils' minds, he 
may also have the satisfaction of feeling the growth of his own. 

I must here add, that it has not been my intention in what I 
have said, to inculcate the idea that the study of books should 
in the least degree be abated to make room for this process of 
waking up mind. The various branches are to be pursued and 



RIGHT MODES OF TEACHING. 93 

as diligently pursued as ever before. The time to be set apart for 
this exercise should be short,— never probably to exceed five min- 
utes. It is to come in when the scholars need rest for a moment, 
and when, if not employed about this, they would probably be 
doing nothing, or perhaps worse than nothing. It should be man- 
aged with care, and should never be made a hobby by teachers, 
as if it w^ere of more importance than anything else. One secret 
of success in this — as indeed in everything— is, that it should 
not be continued too long at once. The pupils should be left 
" longing — not loathing." 

Let me again remind the reader that I have given the above 
as a specimen. The choice of the ear of corn was merely acciden- 
tal ; it happened to lie on my table when I wanted a text. The 
teacher should look upon this simply as a, specimen, and then 
choose his own subjects. The main point aimed at is this:— Never 
ask leading questions which your scholars can hardly fail to 
answer; and never lecture to your pupils till you have somehow 
first kindled in them a living desire to know ; that is, avoid alike 
the "drawing-out"' and the ''pouring-in" process. Rather let it 
be your object to excite inquiry by a question they cannot answer 
without thought and observation,— and such a question as they 
would deem it disgraceful not to be able to answer. This adroitly 
done is " waking up mind.''' The teacher should not infer from 
these illustrations that the materials for waking up mind are 
found only among the objects of nature, and that for this pur- 
pose books are to be ignored or cast aside; far from it. Let the 
awakening process be carried into the examination of books them- 
selves. Revelations as wonderful as those which nature has folded 
within the seeds and flowers of plants may be found within the 
stanzas of a poem or the periods of an oration, if only the scales 
have been removed from the eyes of the beholder. "No magic 
rune," says Carlyle, " is stranger than a book. All that mankind 
has done, thought, gained or been : it is lying in magic preserva- 
tion in the pages of books. They are the chosen possessions of 
men." Object teaching is good, but it is not the only means of 
waking up mind. 



CHAPTER VII. 

CONDUCTING RECITATIONS. 

In considering a teacher's qualifications, the power of exciting 
an interest in the recitations oi his school may not be overlooked. 
No man can be successful for any length of time without this. 
This comprises what is usually implied by aptness to teach. 
All men have not this faculty by nature in an equal degree. 
Some may talk for an hour upon an interesting topic in the pres- 
ence of children without commanding their attention; while there 
are others who can take even a common-place subject and secure 
for any length of time an all-absorbing interest in every word. 
This difference is seen in every grade of public speakers, and in all 
descriptions of writers; but perhaps more strikingly than any- 
where else it is observable among teachers. Enter one school, 
and you may notice that the scholars are dull and listless ; indif- 
ference sits undisturbed upon their brows; or perhaps they are 
driven by the activity of their own natures to some expedient to 
interest themselves, while the teacher is with very commendable 
spirit, laboriously— perhaps learnedly— explaining some principle 
or fact designed for their edification. The secret is, he has not 
yet learned to awaken their attention; he fails to excite their 
interest. 

Pass to another school. A breathless silence pervades the 
room; the countenances of the children, upturned towards the 
teacher, beam with delight. As he kindles into earnestness and 
eloquence, they kindle into responsive enthusiasm. Whenever his 
eye meets theirs, he sees— he feels the glow radiated by the fire he 
is lighting in their souls, and his own gathers new warmth and 
enthusiasm in return. Such a man is apt to teach; and you could 
scarcely break the spell by which he holds his class, "though you 
(94) 



CONDUCTING RECITATIONS. 95 

should give them for playthiDgs, shining fragments broken from 
off the sun." 

He who possesses this gift naturally, has very great advantage 
as a teacher to begin with. The ability to tell well what he knows, 
is of more consequence to the teacher, than the greatest attain- 
ments without the power to communicate them. Combine high 
attainments with the ability to tell, and you have the accom- 
jjlished teacher. 

But this power to communicate is not necessarily a natural 
gift; it comes not always by intuition. It can be acquired. It is 
founded in philosophy; and he who can understand anything of 
the workings of his own mind, who can revert to the mental pro- 
cesses he went through in order to comprehend a principle, who 
can go back to that state of mind he was in before he compre- 
hended it, and then by one step more can put himself in the place 
of the child he is teaching, realizing exactly his perplexities and 
feeling his precise wants, can become the apt teacher. Those who 
fail in this are usually those who have forgotten the steps they 
took to acquire their own knowledge, or perhaps who never 
noticed what steps they did take. 

To acquire this rare qualification should be the constant study 
of the teacher. To this end he should recall, as far as possible, 
the operations of his own mind in childhood. By studying his 
own mind, he learns, often most effectually, what he needs to know 
of others. Whenever he is preparing to teach any principle or 
fact to others, let him ask himself questions like the following : — 
What was the dark point in this, when I studied it? Where did 
my mind labor most? What point did my teacher fail to explain? 
Such questions will frequently suggest the very difficulty which 
perplexes every mind in the same process. Again, the following 
inquiries maybe very useful :— In studying this, what was the first 
point which appeared clear to me? After this, what was the sec- 
ond step, and how did that follow the first? The next in order? 
And the next? Was this the natural order? If not, what is the 
natural order? The right answers to these questions will suggest 
the course to be pursued in the instruction of a class. 



96 PAGE'S THEORY AND PRACTICE. 

The teacher can scarceh- ask a more important qnestion than 
t\\m:—Whatis the natural order of presenting a given subject? 
The ability to determine this, is what constitutes in a great degree 
the ^science of teaching. This inquiry should occupy much thought; 
because a mistake here is disaslrous, and ever will be, as long as 
divine wisdom is superior to human. He who can ascertain the 
order of nature, will be most sure of exciting an interest in the 
subject he is endeavoring to teach. 

The natural order of presenting a subject is determined by two 
things, and if the teacher knows these he needs never make a seri- 
ous mistake. One is the order of the steps of thought folded in 
the subject studied, whether it be a seed or a sonnet, an oration 
or a planet; the other is the law of the mind in knowing the 
subject, and these two agree; for the law of the human mind in 
knowing has been made to harmonize with the order of thought 
wa-apped up in the thing to be known. There is a beautiful 
philosophy in all this, and it is this harmony of ''the thought in 
things" with "the law in the mind, ".that makes any science pos- 
sible. Without it there could certainly be no science of teaching, 
and without a knowledge of it the teacher must grope in the 
dark ; with it he walks in the light. 

Some further suggestions as to conducting school recitations 
are contained in the following paragraphs : 

1. The teacher should thoroughly understand what he 
attempts to teach.— It is destructive of all life in the exercise, if 
the teacher is constantly chained down to the text-book. I have 
no objection, indeed, that he should take his text-book with him 
to the class, and that he should occasionally refer to it to refresh 
his own memory, or to settle a doubt. But who does not know 
that a teacher who is perfectly familiar with what is to be taught, 
has ten times the vivacity of one who is obliged to follow the 
very letter of the book? His own enthusiasm glows in his coun- 
tenance, sparkles in his eye, and leaps from his tongue. He 
watches the halting of the pupil, perceives his diflaculty, devises 
his expedient for illustrating the dark point in some new way, 
and, at the proper moment, renders just the amount of assist- 



CONDUCTING RECITATIONS. 97 

ance which the pupil needs. Not confined to the text, he has the 
use of his ejes ; and when he speaks or explains, he can accom- 
pany his remark with a quickening look of intelligence. In this 
way his class is enlivened. They respect him for his ready attain- 
ment, and they are fired with a desire to be his equal. 

How different is it with a teacher who knows nothing of the 
subject but what is contained in the text before him, and who 
knows that only as he reads it during the intervals occasioned 
by the hesitations of the class. Every question he proposes is 
printed at the bottom of the page; and as soon as he reads the 
question, without a glance at the pupil, his eye sets out on a 
chase after the answer in the text. If the scholar has not already 
been stupefied by such teaching, and happens to give an intelli- 
gent answer, yet not in the precise language of the book, he is set 
right by the teacher's reading the very words,— just so much 
detached from the sentence, as he fancies was intended to answer 
that one question ! In this way he discourages thought in his 
pupils, and sets a bounty on mechanical study. In this way, too, 
he congeals whatever of interest they bring with them to the 
recitation, and they sink into indifference,— or, following the 
instincts of their nature, they seek occupation in play or mis- 
chief, even under the sound of his voice! 

2. The teacher should specially prepare himself for each les- 
son he assigns.— This is naturally suggested by what has just 
been said. The teacher's memory needs to be refreshed. We all 
know how difficult it would be to recite a lesson, in geometry for 
instance, weeks after studying it. It is so in other things. Now 
the teacher should be so familiar with the lesson which he proposes 
to hear recited, that he could recite it himself as perfectly as he 
would desire his scholars to do it. This is seldom the case. I 
have heard a teacher, with the text-book in his hands, complain 
of the dullness or inaccuracy of his classes, when, if the tables had 
been turned, and the pupils allowed to ask the questions, the 
teacher would scarcely have recited as well. And, I may add, this 
is no very uncommon thing! If any one is startled at this asser- 
tion, let him request a friend, in whom he can confide, to ask him 
T. p.— 7 



98 PAGE'S THEORY AND PRACTICE. 

the questions of a particular lesson in geography, or history, or 
gTammar. The teacher should daily studj^ his class lessons. 
This will enable him the better to assign his lessons judiciously. 
In this daily study, he should master the text-book upon the 
subject; and more than this, he should consider what collateral 
matter he can bring in to illustrate the lesson. He should draw 
upon the resources of his own mind,— upon the treasures of his 
common-place book, ^— upon the contents of some encyclopa'dia, 
upon any source, from whence he can obtain a supply of 
knowledge for his purpose. This will improve his own mind, and 
he will be encouraged, as from time to time he teaches the same 
branch, to find that he is able to do better than ever before, and 
that, instead of becoming weary with repetition, he is more and 
more enthusiastic in the subject. 

Going thus to his class — so full of the subject, that were the 
text-book annihilated, he could make another and better one— 
he will have no difficulty to secure attention. As he speaks, his 
eye accompanies his word, and as his pupils answer, he sees the 
expression of their countenances; and what a world of meaning- 
there is in this expression! It betrays, better than words can do, 
the clearness or obscurity of the mind's perception, when a truth 
is presented. How different the beaming of the eye when the soul 
apprehends, from that almost idiotic stare at vacuity when 
words are used without import. And how necessary it is that 



*It is an excellent plan for every teacher to keep a common-place book of con- 
siderable size, different portions of it being set apart for the different subjects 
upon which he is to give instruction. On the first twenty pages, " Geography" 
may be the head,— the next twenty pages may be set apart for " History,"— twenty 
more may be assigned to " Reading,"— and a like number to "Arithmetic," "Gram- 
mar," " Spelling," " Writing," etc., reserving quite a space for " Miscellaneous Mat- 
ter." This would make a large book, but when it is remembered that it is to be 
used for several years, it is well to have it large enough to contain a large amount 
of matter. Now, whenever the teacher hears a lecture on a peculiar method of 
teaching either of these branches, let him note the prominent parts of it under the 
proper head, and especiall)/ the Ulustrations. When he reads or hears an anecdote 
illustrating Geography, History, or Grammar, let it be copied under the proper 
head. If it illustrates Geography, let the name of the place stand at its head. 
When he visits a school, and listens to a new explanation or a new process, let 
him note it under its head. In this way he may collect a thousand valuable 
things to be used with judgment in his school. 



CONDUCTING RECITATIONS. 99 

the teacher should be free to observe the inward workings of the 
soul as indicated upon the countenance. 

Doctor Arnold, of Rugby, England, was one of the wisest and 
most successful teachers of any age or any country. The follow- 
ing anecdote illustrates what he thought of the necessity for daily 
preparation of lessons by the teacher: At one time some friends 
were spending the evening at his house. After chatting pleas- 
antly for an hour, Dr. Arnold asked his guests to excuse him for 
the preparation of his next day's lessons. One of the gentlemen 
said, chafEngly, "Why, Doctor, after all your years of experience 
as a teacher of Latin, you surely do not have to make special 
preparation for meeting your boys in the class-room!" "Sir," 
earnestly replied the great teacher, " I prefer that my pupils shall 
drink from a fresh, lowing fountain, and not from a stagnant 
pool'' 

Nature herself teaches the same lesson of special preparation 
for important work to be done. The rich, Juicy, luscious fruit is 
not matured on a twig that is many, many years old, but upon 
one of the very last season's growth. 

3. The teacher should he able to use our language fluently 
and correctly.— In this many are deficient. They hesitate and 
stammer, and after all, express their ideas in vague terms, and 
perhaps by the use of inaccurate or inelegant language. A 
teacher in no way gives so effectual instruction in grammar as 
by his own use of our language ; and there can be no sight more 
mortifying than that of a teacher laboring to fix in the minds of 
his class some rule of syntax, when his own language at the 
very moment shows an entire disregard of the rule. It is very 
common to hear teachers talk of ^^sums" to their classes in 
arithmetic, and even to ask them to do "sums" in subtraction 
or division! The term ''question'' is often as improperly applied, 
when no question is asked. The teacher should be accurate in 
the use of terms. "Question" is sometimes the proper word; 
sometimes "problem," and sometimes "exercise," or "example," 
may with more propriety be used ; but "sum " means the amount 
of several numbers when added, and it should not be applied as 



100 PAGE'S THEORY AND PRACTICE. 

the name of an exercise. Some teachers use the terms ratio and 
proportion* interchangeably, as if they were synonyms. Such 
inaccuracies in the teacher will be sure to be reproduced in the 
school, and it is a great evil for the scholar to acquire a careless 
habit in the use of terms. 

4. He should have proper animation himself. — Horace Mann 
describes some of the Scotch teachers as working themselves up 
into a feverish excitement in the presence of their classes, and the 
classes in turn as literally bounding from the floor when they 
answer their hasty questions. Now, while I think these Scotch 
teachers go quite too far, I do think that many of our own 
teachers come short of a proper standard of animation. A 
teacher should be ready, without being rapid; animated, without 
being boisterous. Children are imitative beings; and it is aston- 
ishing to observe how very soon they catch the manners of the 
teacher. If he is heavy and plodding in his movements, they will 
very soon be dull and drowsy in theirs; then, if he speaks in a 
sprightly tone, and moves about with an elastic step, they almost 
realizea resurrection from the dead. If he appears absent-minded, 
taking but little interest in the lesson which is recited, they will be 
as inattentive, at least, as he ; while, if all his looks and actions 
indicate that the subject is of some importance, he will gain their 
attention. Nor can I refrain in this place from suggesting to the 
teacher the importance of regarding his manners, while engaged 
in conducting a recitation. His attitude should not be one of 
indolence or coarseness,— and when he moves from his seat, and 
appears at the blackboard to illustrate any point, it should be 
done gracefully, and with a constant regard to the fact, that 
every look and every motion teaches. 

5. He should never proceed without the attention of the 
class. — A loss of interest is sure to follow a want of attention. 
Besides, a habit of inattention, while it is very common, is also 



*We are reminded by this of the college student who was examined rather 
closely by his tutor. "What is ratio?" inquired the tutor. " Ratio ?" said the 
young man, " ratio is proportion." "Well, what is proportion?" "Proportion? 
proportion is ratio." " Well, then," said the tutor, looking perplexed, " what are 
both together ? " " Excuse me," said the pupil, " lean define but one at a time ! " 



CONDUCTING RECITATIONS. 101 

a great calamity to the person who falls into it during life. Many 
a sermon is lost upon a portion of the audience in our churches 
every Sabbath from this cause. When the attention is aroused, 
the impression made is enduring; and one idea then communi- 
cated is worth a hundred at any other time. 

The teacher should see that, before any exercise begins, the con- 
ditions for securing attention are the best possible. If the seats 
are uncomfortable, if the desks are strewn with distracting ob- 
jects, if the room is too cold or too hot, too light or too dark, 
or if the air is bad from imperfect ventilation, certainly the con- 
secutive attention of any single pupil can hardly be expected, 
much less, but what is much more desirable, that of the class as 
a whole. Such conditions invite failure for any recitation. 

Concentration of the class and its proximity to the teacher 
are further conditions for securing attention. The pupils should 
bo so seated for the recitation, that to see all the members, the 
teacher's eye will not be compelled to wander from front to rear, 
or from side to side of the room. 

Again, the manner of questioning has much to do with the 
attention of a class. If the members are called upon in any 
order that they can foreknow, they feel that the responsibility 
for continued attention is removed from them. The same result 
follows if the teacher, before asking a question, calls by name the 
person who is to answer it. This is equivalent to advertising that 
the rest of the class, are, for the present, excused. Recitations 
should be so conducted as to impose upon every member of the 
class the fullest responsibility for everything required from the 
beginning to the end of the recitation period. If this concentra- 
tion and continuity of attention are not secured, a great loss of 
discipline and of power must be sustained. 

6. Avoid a formal routine in teaching.— Children are very apt 
to imbibe the notion that they study in order to recite. They 
have but little idea of any purpose of acquirement beyond recita- 
tion; hence they study their text-book as mere words. The 
teacher should, as soon as possible, lead them to study the 
subject, using the book simply as an instrument. "Books are 



102 PAGE'S THEORY AND PRACTICE. 

but helps"— should become their motto. In order to bring this 
about, the instructor would do well occasionally to leave entirely 
the order of the book, and question them on the topic they have 
studied. If they are pursuing- arithmetic, for instance, and they 
have carefully prepared a definite number of problems, it might be 
well to test their ability by giving them at the recitation others of 
the teacher's own preparing, involving an application of what 
they have learned to the business of life. This will lead them to 
study intelligently. Besides, as soon as they begin to see how their 
knowledge is to be useful to them, they have a new motive to 
exertion. They should be so taught as to discover that gram- 
mar will improve their understanding and use of language; 
that writing will prepare them for business, and by enabling 
them to communicate with their friends, will add to their enjoy- 
ment ; and so of reading and the other branches. 

7. Be careful to use language which is intelligible to children, 
whenever an explanation is given —The object of an explanation 
is to elucidate, to make clearer. How is this object accomplished 
when the explanation is less intelligible than the thing explained? 
Suppose a child should ask her teacher to explain the cause of 
the cold in winter and heat in summer; in other words, the cause 
of the change of seasons. "Oh, yes," says he, pleasantly. "The 
annual revolution of the earth around the sun in connection with 
the obliquity of the ecliptic, occasions the succession of the four 
seasons." * The child listens to these '' words of learned length," 
and is astonished at the learning of her teacher, but she has no 
clearer idea than before of the point she inquired about. 

Mr. S. R. Hall, in his lectures, gives the following forcible illus- 
tration of the same point : 

"Will you please to tell me why I carry one for every ten?" 
said little Laura to her instructor. "Yes, my dear," said he, 
kindly. "It is because numbers increase from right to left in a 
decimal ratio." Laura sat and repeated it to herself two or 
three times, and then looked very sad. The master, as soon as 
he had answered, pursued his other business and did not notice 

* Worcester's Geography. 



CONDUCTING RECITATIONS. 103 

her. But she was disappointed. She understood him no better 
than if he had used words of another language. ''Decimal" and 
'•ratio" were words that might have fallen on her ear before, 
but if so, she understood them none the better for it. She looked 
in the dictionary and was disappointed again, and after some 
time, put away her arithmetic. When asked by her teacher 
why she did so, she replied, "I don't like to study it; I can't 
understand it. " 

"Now the injury to little Laura was very great. She had 
commenced the study with interest; she had learned to answer a 
great many questions in arithmetic and had been pleased. She 
was now using a slate and writing her figures on it, and had 
found the direction to carry one for every ten. This she might 
have been made to understand. The master loved his scholars 
and wished to benefit them, but forgot that terms perfectly plain 
to him would be unintelligible to the child. From that moment 
Laura disliked arithmetic, and every effort that could be used 
with her could not efface the impression that it was a hard study, 
and she could not understand it." 

While upon this subject, I might urge that teachers should not 
resort to evasion when they are not able to explain. It is a much 
more honorable, and far more satisfactory course, for the teacher 
frankly to confess his inability to explain, than to indulge in some 
ridiculous mysticism to keep up the show of knowledge. I may 
never forget the passage I first made through the Eule of Three, 
and the manner in which my manifold perplexities respecting 
" direct and inverse " proportion were solved. " Sir," said I, after 
puzzling a long time over " more requiring more and less requiring 
less" — " will you tell me why I sometimes multiply the second and 
third terms together and divide by the first — and at other times 
multiply the Urst and second and divide by the third ? " "Why, 
because more requires more sometimes, and sometimes it requires 
less— to be sure. Haven't you read the rule, my boy?" "Yes, 
sir ; I can repeat the rule, but I don't understand it." " Why, it 
is because 'more requires more and less requires less!' " " But why, 
sir, do I multiply as the rule says?" "Why, because 'more 



104 PAGE'S THEORY AND PRACTICE. 

requires more and less requires less'— see, the rule says so." "I 
know the rule says so, but I wished tounderstandTT'ijj."— '< Why? 
why?'^ looking at me as if idiocy itself trembled before him — 
"why?— whj^ because the rule says so; don't you see it?— 
S@" More requires more and less requires less!'' — and in the 
midst of this inexplicable combination of more and less, I shrunk 
away to my seat blindly to follow the rule because it said so. 
Such teaching as this is enough to stultify the most inquiring 
mind; and it is to secure the blessing of relief from such influence 
to the children of any particular district, that we come to con- 
sider an occasional change of teachers a mitigated evil. 

8. Require prompt and accurate recitation.— 1 know of noth- 
ing that will abate the interest of a class sooner than dull and 
dragging recitations. The temptation in such cases is very 
strong for the teacher to help the class by the "drawing-out 
process" before described. This, however, only makes the mat- 
ter worse. The dull recitation calls for the teacher's aid; and 
his aid reproduces the dull recitation. The only way is to stop 
at once, and refuse to proceed till the recitation can go alone. 
It is just as easy to have good lessons as poor; and the teacher 
should have the energy to insist upon them. Mark the coun- 
tenances of a class as they go to their seats after a good 
recitation. They feel that they have done something, and 
they look as if they valued the teacher's approbation and 
their own so highly, that they will learn the next lesson still 
better. 

It is, moreover, a great saving of time, to have the lessons 
promptly recited. This saving will afford the opportunity to 
introduce those additional illustrations I have before suggested, 
in order to excite a still deeper interest. It may sometimes, 
though not always, be well to make a prompt and perfect recita- 
tion the condition of introducing the additional matter. 

9. Rely not too much upon simultaneous recitation.— This has 
become quite too fashionable of late. It had its origin in the 
large schools established some years since, known as Lancas- 
terian schools, and perhaps was well enough adapted to schools 



CONDUCTING RECITATIONS. 105 

kept upon that plan in large cities. But when this mode of 
reciting is adopted in our district and country schools, where the 
circumstances of large numbers and extreme backwardness are 
wanting, it is entirely uncalled for, and like other city fashions 
transferred to the country, is really out of place. 

Seriously, I look upon this as one of the prominent faults in 
many of our schools. It destroys all independence in the pupil 
by taking away his individuality. He moves with the phalanx. 
Learning to rely on others, he becomes superficial in his lessons. 
He is tempted to indolence by a knowledge that his deficiencies 
will not stand out by themselves ; and he comforts himself after 
a miserable recitation with the consoling reflection, that he 
has been able to conceal his want of thoroughness from his 
teacher. 

It may sometimes be useful. A few questions thus answered 
may serve to give animation to a class when their interest begins 
to flag; but that which may serve as a stimulant must not be 
relied on for nutrition. As an example of its usefulness, I have 
known a rapid reader tamed into due moderation by being put in 
companionship with others of slower speech, just as we tame a 
friskful colt by harnessing him into a team of grave old horses. 
But aside from some such definite purpose, I have seen no 
good come of this innovation. I am satisfied its prevalence is 
an evil, and worthy of the careful consideration of teachers. 



By the foregoing means and others which will suggest them- 
selves to the thoughtful teacher's mind, he can arouse the interest 
of his classes so that study will be more attractive than play. 
For this object every teacher should labor. It is of course 
impossible to give specific rules to meet every case; it is not 
desirable to do it. The teacher, put upon the track, will easily 
devise his own expedients; and his own, be it remembered, will 
usually he found the best for him. But it should also be remem- 
bered that an expedient is only an expedient— only a way of 
accomplishing a purpose, and its eflSeiency depends upon what 



106 PAGE'S THEORY AXD PRACTICE. 

the teacher puts into it. and not upon the formal expedient 
itself. He cannot put into it what he does not himself possess. 
"In the last analysis, the vital element in teaching is the 
teacher,"' and no dead device, no empirical expedient, no me- 
chanical method can be safelv substituted for this vital element 
of the teacher's conscious purpose. 

As a motive for every teacher to study carefully the art of 
teaching: well at the recitation, it should be borne in mind that 
then and there he comes before his pupils in a peculiar and prom- 
inent manner; it is there his mind comes specially in contact 
with theirs, and there that he lays in them, for good or for evil, 
the foundations of their mental habits. It is at the recitation in 
a peculiar manner, that he makes his mark upon their minds: 
and as the seal upon the wax, so his mental character upon 
theirs leaves its impress behind. 



CHAPTER Till. 

EXCITING INTEREST IN STUDY. 

It is ever an interestinor question to the teacher, and one 
which he should consider with great care — --How can I excite 
an interest among my pupils in their studies?"' The intelligent 
teacher feels that this is the great question; for he foresees 
that, if he fails here, his diflBculty in governing his school will 
be very much increased. He therefore turns his attention with 
deep solicitude to the motives he may present, and the meth- 
ods he may employ to awaken and keep alive the interest of 
the school. 

If he has reflected at all upon the subject, he has already 
arrived at the conviction, that it is necessary for the good of all 
concerned that the interest awakened should be an abiding one; 
that it should not only not abate during the term of school, but 
continue— nay, grow stronger and strouger — even after school- 
days have passed away. There is probably no greater mistake in 
education, than that of raising in school an artificial excitement, 
which may aid perhaps in securing better recitations, but which 
will do nothing toward putting the mind into such a state, that 
it will press on in the pursuit of knowledge even after the living 
teacher has closed his labors. 

The higher principles of our nature being aroused with diffi- 
culty, are too apt to be neglected by the teacher, and thus they 
remain in their original feebleness: while he contents himseK with 
appealing to our lower characteristics. — thus doing a lasting 
injury by unduly cultivating and strengthening them, at the 
same time that he awakens after all but a temporary interest. 

In view of the importance of the subject, and the difficulty of 

(107) 



108 PAGE'S THEORY AND PRACTICE. 

judging aright upon it, I shall make no apology for devoting a 
few pages to the consideration of 

SECTION I. —INCENTIVES TO STUDY — EMULATION. 

The teacher will find in a greater or less degree, in the mind of 
every child, the principle of Emulation. It is a question very 
much debated of late, What shall he do with it? Much has been 
said and written on this question, and the ablest minds, both of 
past ages and the present, have given us their conclusions respect- 
ing it; and it often increases the perplexity of the young teacher 
to find the widest difference of opinion on this subject among men 
upon whom in other things he would confidingly rely for guidance. 
Why, asks he, why is this ? Is there no such thing as truth in this 
matter? or have these men misunderstood each other? When 
they have written with so much ability and so much earnestness- 
some zealously recommending emulation as a safe and desirable 
principle to be encouraged in the young, and others as warmly 
denouncing it as altogether unworthy and improper,— have they 
been thinking of the same thing? Thus perplexed with conflicting 
opinions, he is thrown back upon his own reflection for a decision; 
or what is more common, he endeavors to find the truth by 
experimenting upon his pupils. He tries one course for one term, 
and a different one the next ; repeats both during the third, and 
still finds himself unsettled as he commences the fourth. Mean- 
time some of his experiments have wrought out a lasting injury 
upon the minds of his pupils; for, if every teacher must settle 
every doubt by new experiments upon his classes, the progress 
that is made in the science and art of teaching must be at the 
untold expense of each new set of children; —just as if the young- 
doctor could take nothing as settled by the experience of his pre- 
decessors, but must try over again for himself the effect of all the 
various medical agents, in order to decide whether arsenic does 
corrode the stomach and produce death, — whether cantharides 
can be best applied inwardly or outwardly,— whether mercury is 
most salutary when administered in ounces or grains, or wiiether 
repletion or abstinence is preferable in a fever! When such is the 



EXCITING INTEREST IN STUDY. 109 

course of a young practitioner in a community, who does not 
confidently expect the churchyard soon to become the most popu- 
lous district, and the sexton to be.the most thrifty personage in 
the village, unless indeed he too should become the subject of 
experiment ? 

But is there not a good sense and a bad sense, associated with 
the term Emulation ;— and have not these eager disputants fallen, 
into the same error, in this matter, that the two knights com- 
mitted, when they immolated each other in a contest about the 
question whether a shield was gold or silver, when each had seen 
but one side of it? I incline to the opinion that this is the case, — 
and that those who wax so warm in this contest, would do well 
to give us at the outset a careful definition of the term Emula- 
tion, as they intend to use it. This would perhaps save them- 
selves a great deal of toil, and their readers a great deal of 
perplexity. 

Now it seems to me the truth on this question lies within a 
nutshell. 

1. If emulation means a desire for improvement, progress, 
growth, — an ardent wish to rise above one's present condition or 
attainments,— or even an aspiration to attain to eminence in the 
school or in the world, it is a laudable motive. This is self-emu- 
lation. It presses the individual on to surpass himself. It com- 
pares his present condition with what he would be— with what he 
ought to be; and " forgetting those things which are behind, and 
reaching forth unto those things which are before, he presses 
towards the mark for the prize." "An ardor kindled by the 
praiseworthy examples of others, inciting to imitate them, or 
to equal, or even excell them, without the desire of depressing 
them,"* is the sense in which the apostle uses the term [Romans 
xi. 14] when he says: "If by any means I may provoke to emu- 
lation them which are my flesh, and might save some of them." 
If this be the meaning of emulation, it is every way a worthy 
principle to be appealed to in school. This principle exists to a 



Dr. Webster. 



110 PAGE'S THEORY AND PRACTICE. 

greater or less extent in the mind of everj- child, and may very 
safely be strengthened by being called by the teacher into lively 
exercise; provided always, that the eminence is sought from a 
desire to be useful, and not from a desire of self-glorification. 

2. But if emulation, on the other hand, means a desire of sur- 
passing others, for the sake of surpassing them ; if it be a dispo- 
sition that will cause an individual to be as well satisfied with 
the highest place, whether he has risen above his fellows by his 
intrinsic well-doing, or they have fallen below him by their neg- 
lect; if it puts him in such a relation to others that their failures 
will be as gratifying to him as his own success ; if it be a princi- 
ple that prompts the secret wish in the child that others may 
miss their lessons, in order to give him an opportunity to gain 
applause by a contrast with their abasement,— then, without 
doubt, it is an unworthy and unholy principle, and should never 
be encouraged or appealed to by the teacher. It has no simili- 
tude to that spirit which prompts a man to "love his neighbor 
as himself." It has none of that generosity which rejoices in the 
success of others. Carried out in after-life, it becomes ambition, 
such as fired the breast of a Napoleon, who sought a throne for 
himself, though he waded through the blood of millions to 
obtain it. 

It is to this principle that the apostle, before quoted, alludes, 
when he classes emulation with the "works of the flesh," which 
are these: "adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness, 
idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, variance, Emulation, wrath, strife, 
seditions, etc.,— of the which things, I tell you before, as I have 
told you in times past, that they which do such things shall not 
inherit the kingdom of God." It is of this principle that the com- 
mentator, Scott, remarks :— " This thirst for human applause has 
caused more horrible violations of the law of love, and done more 
to desolate the earth, than even the grossest sensuality ever did." 

Thus, Emulation is a term which indicates a very good or a 
very bad thing, according to the definition we give it. In one 
view of it, the warmest aspirings to rise are consistent with a 
generous wish that others may rise also. It is even compatible 



EXCITING INTEREST IN STUDY. Ill 

with a heartfelt satisfaction in its possessor at the progress of 
others, though they should outstrip him in his upward course. 
It is the spirit which actuates all true Christians, as they wend 
their way heavenward, rejoicing the more as they find the way is 
thronged with those who hope to gain an immortal crown. 

In the other view of it, we see men actuated by selfishness 
mingled with pride, inquiring, in the spirit of those mentioned in 
Scripture, "Who among us shall be the greatest?" We every- 
where see men violating these sacred injunctions of divine wis- 
dom: "Let no man seek his own, but every man another's 
wealth." "Let nothing be done through strife or vainglory; 
but in lowliness of mind, let each esteem other better than them- 
selves."— "In honor prefering one another." 

If such be the true pictures of emulation, in both the good 
and the bad sense, certainly teachers cannot hesitate a moment 
as to their duty. They may appeal to the principle first de- 
scribed,— cultivate and strengthen it; and in so doing, they may 
be sure they are doing a good work. But unless they intend to 
violate the teachings of common sense, and the higher teachings 
of Christianity, I ftnow not how they can appeal to the principle 
of emulation as defined in the second case. 

But it may be urged that the teacher will find emulation, even 
in this latter sense, existing in human nature; that he cannot 
get rid of it if he will ; that it will be one of the most active prin- 
ciples to which he can resort in arousing the mind to exertion ; 
and, furthermore, that it has been appealed to by many of the 
most eminent teachers time out of mind. 

To this it is replied, that it is not disputed that children are 
selfish, and that this selfishness may indeed be made a powerful 
instrumentality in urging them forward to the attainment of a 
temporary end. But does the existence of selfishness prove that 
it needs cultivation in the human character? And will the end, 
when attained, justify the means? Is the end, whatever it may 
be, if attained at such a cost, a blessing to be desired ? Will not 
the heart suffer more than the head will gain ? 



112 PAGE'S THEORY AND PRACTICE. 

It may be further urged, that the child will find the world full 
of this principle when he leaves the school ; and why, it is asked, 
should he at school be throAvn into an unnatural position? I 
answer that evil is not to be overcome by making evil more prev- 
alent,— and though there may be too much of self-seeking in the 
world, that is the very reason why the teacher should not encour- 
age its growth. The more true Christianity prevails in the world, 
the less there will be of that spirit which rejoices at another's 
halting; hence I am convinced the teacher should do nothing to 
make that spirit more prevalent. 

Nor is it essential to the progress of the pupil even temporarily, 
since there are other and worthier principles which can be as suc- 
cessfully called into action. If we look carefully at the expedi- 
ency of thus stimulating the mind, we find that after the first 
trial of strength, many become disheartened and fall behind in 
despair. It will soon be obvious, in a class of twenty, who are 
the few that will be likely to surpass all others; and therefore 
all the others, as a matter of course, fall back into envy, perhaps 
into hopeless indifference. Who has not seen this in a class in 
spelling, for instance, where the strife was for the "iieac/" of the 
class, but where all but two or three were qui^ as well satisfied 
with being at the " foot?^' It does not then accomplish the pur- 
pose for which it is employed ; and since those who are aroused 
by it, are even more injured than those who are indifferent, their 
undesirable qualities being thus strengthened, the opinion is 
entertained that those teachers are the most wise who bend their 
ingenuity to find some other means to awaken the minds of the 
children under their charge. 

From what has been said, then, Emulation is to be recognized 
or repudiated among the incentives of the schoolroom, according 
to the signification we assign to the term. 

SECTION II.— PRIZES. 

It lias for a long time been the custom of teachers to offer 
some prize as an incentive to exertion in school ; a prize of some 
pecuniary value, a book, or a medal. In some places beneficent 



EXCITING INTEREST IN STUDY. 113 

individuals have bestowed by legacy the means to purchase 
annually the prizes thus to be used. Every young teacher is 
called upon, therefore, to inquire whether such an incentive is a 
proper one to be employed in the schoolroom. If there is any 
good to be expected from such an incentive, will it counterbal- 
ance the evils that spring from the practice? Will the good of 
the whole school be promoted by such a measure,— and will this 
be a permanent or a temporaiy good? These are questions 
which press for an honest answer; and the faithful teacher should 
not shrink from a careful investigation of the whole matter; and 
if he finds good reason to differ from time-honored authority, he 
should abide by the truth rather than by prescriptive usage. 

In my own case, I may be allowed to say, my mind was early 
turned to this point; though I confess with a strong bias in favor 
of the use of prizes. Pretty thoroughly for a series of years did 
I test their efficacy, but with a growing conviction that the prize 
was not the proper instrumentality to create a healthy interest in 
the school. This conviction acquired additional strength by three 
or four years' trial of other incentives; and it was fully confirmed 
afterwards by a trial made for the purpose of testing again the 
efficacy of a prize, at an age when I could more carefully watch 
the workings of the human mind, and better appreciate the bene- 
fits or evils resulting from such a measure. I am now free to say 
that I am satisfied that prizes offered to a school in such a way 
that all may compete for them and only two or three obtain 
them, will always be productive of evil consequences, far over- 
balancing any temporary or partial good that may arise from 
them, and therefore they ought not to be used as incitements in 
our schools.* 

Having expressed an opinion so decidedly upon a measure 
which claims among its friends and advocates some of the best 



*It may be well to remind the reader that I have used the term Prizes here in 
contradistinction from a system of Rewards, by which the teacher proposes to give 
some token of his regard to everyone who does well,— and the more brilliant suc- 
cess of a few does not necessarily preclude others from participating in the favor 
according to their merit. Of such a system of Rewards I shall have something to 
say presently. 

T. P.— 8 



114 PAGE'S THEORY AND PRACTICE. 

minds in the country, I shall be expected to assign some reasons 
for the faith I entertain. From this I shall not shrink. I pro- 
ceed therefore to express such objections to the use of prizes, 
as have been suggested to my mind by my own experience, and 
confirmed by the experience and observation of others in whom 
I have great confidence. 

I. The offer of a prize gives undue prominence to a conipjara- 
tively unworthy object.— It practically teaches the child to under- 
value the higher reward of a good conscience, and a love of 
learning for its own sake. The dazzling medal is placed in the 
foreground of his field of vision ; and it is very likeh^ to eclipse 
those less showy but more abiding rewards found in a sense of 
duty and a desire to be qualified for usefulness. In studying his 
lesson he thinks of the prize. He studies that he may merely 
recite well; for it is a good recitation that wins the prize. He 
thinks not of duty, or of future usefulness; the prize outshines 
all other objects. 

II. The pursuit of a prize engenders a spirit of rivalry among 
the pupi/s.— Rivalry in pursuit of an object which only one can 
attain, and which all others must lose, must end in exultation 
on the part of the winner, and disappointment and envy on the 
part of the losers. It may be said, this ought not to be so; 
but seldom can it be said, that it is not so. Such is human 
nature, and such it ever will be. Unpleasant feelings— sometimes 
concealed, to be sure — but generally expressed in unequivocal 
terms— grow out of the award of almost every school prize, and 
sometimes continue to exert their baleful influence through life. 
Now as long as human nature brings forth unlovely traits almost 
spontaneously, such direct efforts to cultivate them surely are 
not called for. It is the part of wisdom, then, to omit such cul- 
ture and avoid such results, especially when safer means are so 
accessible. 

III. The hope of gaining the prize stimulates only a few, while 
tire many become indifferent.— This is admitted to be true even 
by the advocates of the prize system. Let a prize be offered in 
any class as a reward for the best scholarship, and in a very few 



EXCITING INTEREST IN STUDY. 115 

days it becomes perfectly obvious to all who the two or three are 
that will be likely to outstrip all the others. These two or three 
will be stimulated to exertion; but the strife is left entirely to 
them. All others, despairing of success, resolve at once to "let 
their moderation be known to all men;" and since the prize has 
been made so prominent an object, they cannot be expected now 
to look at anything above and beyond it. Feeling that they are 
not likely to participate in the honors of the class, they have but 
little disposition to share in its toils. 

This to be sure is not always so. There are some, who, ceas- 
ing to strive for the prize, toil for the more substantial bless- 
ing—a. good education,— and in the end come out the best 
scholars. This is the way indeed most of our strong men are 
made; for it has long been remarked that the prize scholars in 
our schools, and even in our colleges, do not usually become the 
most distinguished men. On the other hand, many of them are 
never heard of after receiving their honors. But, though some 
of the slower scholars do thus hit upon the true path to emin- 
ence, it is not to be set to the credit of the system; they rise in 
spite of the system rather than by virtue of it; while the ulti- 
mate failure of the prize scholars is usually directly attributable 
to the defect of the system ; for having been unduly stimulated 
to study solely with reference to recitation, and not with regard 
to future usefulness, their memories have been developed out of 
all proportion to the other faculties of their minds; and, though 
they may have been very good reciters, they have no power to 
become independent thinkers. Under different training they 
might have become strong men. 

But to look no further than the school, the remark holds true 
in general, that prizes stimulate the few, and the many become 
indifferent not only to prizes, but to other and better motives. 
That system of incentives only can be approved, which reaches 
and influences successfully all the mind subjected to its operation. 

Nor is this an unimportant consideration. It is not sufficient 
praise for a teacher that he has a few good scholars in his school. 
Almost any teacher can call out the talent of the active scholars 



116 PAGE'S THEORY AND PRACTICE. 

and make them brilliant reciters. The highest merit, however, 
lies in reaching- all the pupils, the dull as well as the active, and 
in making the most of them, or rather in leading them to make 
the most of themselves. It should be remembered of every child, 
that the present is his only opportunity of being a child, and 
of receiving the training appropriate to childhood ; and that 
teacher who rests satisfied with a s^^stem that does not reach the 
many, while he amuses himself and his visitors with the precocity 
of a few of his most active scholars, is recreant to his responsible 
trust. 

IV. There is much difficulty in awarding the prize so as to do 
strict justice to a/7.— So many things are to be taken into the 
account in order to determine the excellence of a performance 
compared with others, that some particulars are very likely to 
be overlooked. Those who are called to judge of the results often 
disagree among themselves. The following anecdote will illus- 
trate this : Three literary gentlemen were appointed to select the 
best from several compositions, presented by a class, who had 
written them in competition for a gold medal. Each of the gen- 
tlemen carefully read the whole number in private, and conscien- 
tiously selected the best according to his judgment. When they 
came together to compare results, it was found that each man 
had selected the best, but that no two had selected the same! 
They carefully read and compared the three, and still each 
insisted that his original choice was the best. After much debate 
and considerable delay, one of the parties being obliged to go to 
his business, relieved himself from a painful detention, and his 
friends from a perplexing doubt, by saying he believed the com- 
position he had selected was the best, but, as he could not stop to 
claim its rights, he would yield them in favor of the second best 
in the hands of one of his associates. This ended the dispute, 
and the action in favor of the successful one, was declared to be 



unanimous 



:f 



This only proves how difficult it is to decide ; and in the case 
just cited, it might well be asked, why should oneof these competi- 
tors be held up to the multitude to be applauded and admired, 



EXCITING INTEREST IN STUDY. 117 

and the others sent back to their classes covered with the shame 
of a failure? What principle of justice sanctioned this decision? 
Nor is this a solitary instance. It rarely happens that the case 
is perfectly clear. There is usually much perplexity about it; and 
lience one reason why the decision seldom satisfies the friends of 
the parties either in the school or at home. But other consider- 
ations besides the intrinsic merits of the performance are to be 
taken into account in awarding a prize ; as, 

1. A difference in the external facilities which the competitors 
enjoy for getting the lessons.— One pupil ma^^ be the son of 
poverty, and be compelled to labor during all the hours out of 
school; another may be in easy circumstances, and have nothing 
to prevent giving undivided attention to study during the whole 
day. One may be the child of parents who have no power to 
render assistance by way of explaining a difficult point; while the 
other may have all his doubts removed at once by parental aid. 
One may never even be encouraged by a kind v^ord at home; 
another is constantly urged to effort, and perhaps not allowed to 
be idle. One may have access to no books but his school-manuals; 
the other nmy have at his command a large librarj^ This differ- 
ence in circumstances should be taken into the account; but it 
never can be fully understood by those who are called to decide. 

2. The improper means which may hare been employed to 
secure the prize.— Ambition when aroused is not alwa^' s scrupu- 
lous of its means. One competitor may be high-minded; may 
enter the arena determined to succeed by an honorable strife; 
may resolve to succeed by his own exertions, or to fail rather 
than bring in anything which is not the fruit of his own study. 
Another, regardless of honor or principle, resolves only to suc- 
ceed, whatever it may cost; hesitates not to copy from others if 
possible, or to apply to a brother in college or some friend in the 
high school to furnish the difficult solution, prepared to order. 
One young lady spends days and nights in arranging the glow- 
ing thoughts for her composition, determined if industry, study, 
good taste, and a careful application of the rules of rhetoric can 
effect anything, that her production shall be worthy of a prize. 



118 PAGE'S THEORY AND PRACTICE. 

Another, in no way distinguished for scholarship, industry, or 
honor, writes a careless letter to a married sister in a distant 
city, invoking her aid. In due time the mail brings an elegant 
essay. It is copied with sufficient accuracy to be read, and at the 
examination takes the prize ! The fair ^^ authoress'' stands forth 
and is flattered before the multitude,— is perhaps made to believe 
that she is worthy of praise; she grasps the golden bauble, and, 
covered with the blushes of modesty, receives the congratulations 
and caresses of friends, and is afterwards reputed a good scholar. 
Her competitors meantime become convinced that effort cannot 
rival genius; they are mortified to think they have presumed to 
enter the arena with native talent, and become disheartened as 
to any future attempt. 

Now where is the justice in all this proceeding? Yet this is not 
fiction; it is history! If such abuses— abuses that might well 
make an angel weep, revealing as they do, that woman's heart 
can be thus sold to deception— are the accompaniments of a prize 
system, may we not well doubt the utility of that system? 

Yet who can know either the different facilities enjoyed by the 
competitors, or the want of principle in some of them? Who can 
enter the secret chambers of the mind or the heart, and estimate 
with any accuracy the just amount of merit in any action ? This 
is God's prerogative; while "man looketh only on the outward 
appearance." My inference then is : A system can hardly be safe 
which is so uncertain. 

V. The prize rewards success, not effort; talent not 
WORTH.— Everyone knows that in estimating the value and virtue 
of an action, the motive which prompted it, and the effort it 
fiecessarily cost, should be taken into the account. Everyone 
knows, too, that success in study is by no means a criterion by 
w'hich to judge of the merits of the scholar. Some learn their 
lessons with great facility and with but little effort; others study 
long and patiently without any brilliant results. One competi- 
tor for a prize may bring results which have cost him midnight 
toil and the most unremitting perseverence ; another with 
brighter parts, and with but little labor, is able to surpass him, 



EXCITING INTEREST IN STUDY. 119 

and takes the medal. Now the former deserves in a far higher 
degree the encouragement of the reward ; yet it is given to him 
who has the talent but who lacks the industry. The rule of 
Scripture which announces that "to whom much is given, of him 
shall much be required,'- is violated, and he is rewarded for pro- 
ducing but little more than the one to whom little is given. 

It is often urged by those who advocate a system of prizes and 
rewards, that God rewards; and therefore it is at least justifiable 
that we should imitate his example. I admit that God, in his 
government, does reward ; but he rewards effort rather than suc- 
cess; he "looketh upon the heart" as man cannot do, and 
rewards worth, not talent. We might, indeed, imitate his 
example, if we had less frailty, and were not so liable to be 
imposed upon by the outward appearance. God indeed rewards 
men; but he estimates the secret intention, seeing the inward 
springs of thought before they find expression in words or 
actions. He regards the motive, and holds out for the encour- 
agement of the humblest child of earth, who does the best he can, 
as rich a crown of glory, as he does for those whose outward 
circumstances, in the eyes of mortals, are more auspicious. 
When man can as wisely and as righteously bestow' his prizes 
and rewards, there will be far less objection to their use. 

VI. The pupil who studies for a prize as his chief motive, will 
seldom continue to study when the prize is withdrawn.— This is 
so obvious as scarcely to need illustration. If it be necessary to 
add anything to the mere statement of the fact, an appeal to 
almost universal experience would confirm it. A teacher who has 
depended upon prizes in a school, finds it very difficult to awaken 
an interest there when he withdraws the prize. Hence many have, 
on trying the experiment of abandoning the prize system, become 
discouraged, and have returned again to the use of prizes, believ- 
ing them essential to their success. Thus the very argument 
which shows most clearly their pernicious tendency, is made a 
reason for continuing them. As before hinted, the prize scholars 
in our academies, and even our colleges, are seldom distinguished 
men in after-life,— a fact that speaks conclusively on this point. 



120 PAGE'S THEORY AND PRACTICE. 

But it can scarcely be necessary to spend words to prove a truth 
almost self-evident. 

VII. By the prize system, the influence of the good example of 
some of the best pupils, is lost upon the school.— AW who have 
taught, know how important this influence is to the success of 
the school. It tells with resistless power upon the other scholars, 
wherever it exists, unless some unworthy motive can be assigned 
for it. But under the prize system, let a teacher appeal to the 
example of his best scholars, and the reply is, "Oh, yes, he 
behaves well, or he studies diligently, but he is trying to get the 
prize.'" With this understanding, his example becomes powerless, 
unless, indeed, there may be a disposition to be unlike him in 
everything. It is believed this is a consideration of considerable 
importance. 

1 have thus assigned, at some length, the reasons why I should 
discountenance, among the incentives of the school, the use of 
Prizes. As to the use of '^ Rewards,'' when they are made so 
numerous that everyone who is really deserving may receive one, 
—and when the basis of their distribution is not talent, not suc- 
cess merely, but good intention and praiseworthy effort,— I have 
much less to say. As expressions of the teacher's interest in the 
children, and of his approval of their well-doing, they may serve 
a good end. Perhaps there is no very strong objection to them in 
principle ; though if the teacher subjects himself to the necessary 
outlay in the purchase of them, it may become burdensome to 
him. I may add, however, that / do not think rewards are 
necessary to the teacher's success. 1 should prefer to do without 
them. It is possible to produce such a feeling in the schoolroom, 
that the approving conscience of the child, and the commenda- 
tory smile of the teacher, shall be the richest of all rewards. 
These come without money and without price, and may always 
be freely and safely bestowed, wherever there is a good intention 
exhibited by the child. That is the most healthy state of things 
where these are most prized. As children whose parents begin 
earl}^ to hire them to do their duty, are seldom ready afterwards 
to render their cheerful service as an act of filial obligation, when- 



EXCITING INTEREST IN STUDY. 121 

ever the pay is withheld,— so children at school, who have been 
accustomed to expect a reward, seldom pursue their studies as 
cheerfully when that expectation is cut off. 

SECTION III.— PROPER INCENTIVES. 

In what has already been said, it has been more than hinted 
that there are higher attributes than emulation, which the 
teacher should address, and which, if he is successful in calling 
them into exercise, will be quite sufficient to insure the proper 
application of his pupils to their studies. They have the merit, 
moreover, of being* safe. They do not unduly stimulate the 
intellectual, at the expense of the moral faculties. Their very 
exercise constitutes a healthy growth of the moral nature. 
Some of these I may briefly allude to. 

I. A DESIRE TO GAIN THE APPROBATION OF THEIR PARENTS AND 

TEACHER.— The love of approbation is as universal in the human 
mind as emulation. Not one in a thousand can be found who 
does not possess it. AVithin proper limits, it is a desirable trait 
in human character. It is, to be sure, one of the selfish propen- 
sities; but among them all, it is the most innocent. Carried to 
an extreme, it would lead its possessor to crave the good opinion 
of the bad as well as of the good, and to become an obsequious 
seeker after popularity. This, of course, is to be deprecated. But 
there can be no danger of this extreme, as long as the approba- 
tion of parents and teachers is the object aimed at. It implies 
in the child a respect for the opinions, and a confidence in the 
justice of his parents and teachers; and hence it implies in him a 
generous desire to please, as a condition of being commended by 
them. 

In this sense, the love of approbation may be appealed to by 
the teacher. He perhaps need not frequently use the language of 
praise. It will generally be sufficient, if the smile of approval 
beams forth in his countenance. If he is judicious as well as just, 
this boon soon becomes a precious one to the child. It is a 

reward, moreover, which 

"Is twice blest; 
It blesseth him who gives and him who takes." 



122 PAGE'S THEORY AND PRACTICE. 

II. A DESIRE OF ADVANCEMENT.— This is emulation in its good 
sense. It leads the child, as before remarked, to compare his 
present standing and attainments with what they should be, 
and to desire to surpass himself. This is ever commendable. 
Man was made for progress; and it is no unworthy aspiration, 
when this desire fires the youthful breast. The teacher, then, may 
appeal to this desire, may kindle it into a flame even, with 
safety, — because it is a flame that w^arms without consuming 
that on which it feeds. 

III. A DESIRE TO BE USEFUL.— The good teacher should never 
fail to impress upon the child that the object of his being placed 
on earth, was that he might be of some use to the world by which 
he is surrounded. " No man liveth to himself, and no man dieth 
to himself." He can be thus useful by storing the mind with 
knowledge and the heart with right affections. He may be 
reminded of the connection between his present studies, and the 
pursuits of life to which they may be applied. Some judicious 
hint at the future application of any branch is always a good 
preparation of the mind to pursue it. If there is a definite 
object in view, there will always be more alacrity in the labor 
of study; and this may be made to influence the young pupil 
as well as the more advanced. It is no small thing for the 
child if he can be early made to feel that he is living to some 
purpose. 

IV. A DESIRE TO DO RIGHT.— Tliis, in othcr words, is a disposition 
to obey conscience by conforming to the will of God. This indeed 
is the highest and holiest of all the motives to human action. In 
its fullest sense it constitutes the fundamental principle of a re- 
ligious character. The teacher should most assiduously^ cultivate 
in the child a regard for this principle. God has implanted the 
conscience in every child of earth, that it should early be made 
use of to regulate the conduct. That teacher is either grossly 
ignorant or madly perverse, who disregards the conscience, while 
he appeals alone to the selfishness of the young, and thus practi- 
cally teaches that moral obligation is a nullity; that the law of 
God — so beautifully expounded by tlie Savior— "Thou shalt 



EXCITING INTEREST IN STUDY. 123 

love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, 
and with all thy mind," and "Thou shalt love thy neighbor as 
thyself "—is of little consequence; and that the injunction of the 
apostle — "Whether ye eat or drink, or whatsoever ye do, do all 
to the glory of God," is as good as obsolete. 

In early childhood the conscience is most active. It needs, to 
be sure, at that period to be enlightened ; but if the teachings of 
Revelation are made plain to the child, he seldom disregards 
them. The teacher has at this period very much to do, as I have 
before said, in the chapter on Responsibility of Teachers; and he 
cannot neglect his duty without the most aggravated culpabil- 
ity. The point I urge here, is, that he should use these motives 
as incentives to study. The child can be made to feel that he 
owes the most diligent efforts for improvement to his teacher, 
who daily labors for his improvement; to his parents, who have 
kindly supplied his wants, and have provided the means for his 
cultivation; to society, whose privileges he may enjoy and to 
which he is bound to make a return by becoming an intelligent 
and useful member of it; to himself, as a rational and immortal 
being, capable of unbounded enjoyment or untold misery, just in 
proportion as he prepares himself for either; and above all to his 
Creator, by whose bounty he lives, surrounded with friends and 
blessed with opportunities, which are denied to millions of his fel- 
low-beings,— by whose gracious providence he has been endowed 
with faculties and capabilities making him but little lower than 
the angels, and which he is bound to cultivate for usefulness and 
for Heaven, — by whose mercy he has been supplied, as millions 
have not, with the word of God, to guide his mind to things 
above, and with the influences of Christian society, to cheer him 
in his path to Heaven; — above all, I repeat, should the child be 
taught to feel that he owes to God his best efforts to make the 
most of all his powers for time and eternity. If this can be done 
(and I believe to a. great extent it can be done), there will be no 
need of a resort to those questionable incentives found in exciting 
children to outstrip their fellows by prizes and rewards; while in 
this very process the foundation of a good moral training will be 



124 PAGE'S THEORY AND PRACTICE. 

< 
laid, without which the perfect structure of a noble character can 

never be reared in later life. 

To the motives already alluded to, if it be necessary to add 
another, 1 would urge, 

V. The pleasure of acquisition.— This is often underrated 
by teachers. Our Creator has not more universally bestowed a 
natural appetite for the food which is necessary for the growth of 
the body, than he has a mental longing for the food of the mind ; 
and as he has superadded a sensation of pleasure to the neces- 
sary act of eating, so he has made it a law of the mind to expe- 
rience its highest delight while in the act of receiving the mental 
aliment. Whoever has observed childhood with an attentive eye, 
must have been impressed with the wisdom of God in this arrange- 
ment. How much the child acquires within the first three years 
after its birth! He learns a difficult language with more pre- 
cision than a well-educated adult foreigner could learn it in 
the same time; yet language is not his only or his chief study. 
Daring these same three years, he makes surprising advances in 
general knowledge. He seeks an intimate acquaintance with all 
the physical objects by which he is surrounded. The size, form, 
color, weight, temperature, and use of each are investigated by 
the test of his own senses, or ascertained by innumerable 
inquiries. His ideas of height and distance, of light and heat, of 
motion and velocity, of cause and effect, are all well defined. He 
has made no mean attainments in morals. He comprehends the 
law of right and wrong, so that his decisions may well put to the 
blush his superiors in age; and unless grossly neglected, he has 
learned the duty of obedience to parents and reverence towards 
God. Now all this amazing progress has been made, because of 
the irrepressible curiosity with which God has endowed him, and 
the unspeakable delight he experiences in acquiring the knowl- 
edge which gratifies it. 

All must have noticed the delight with wiiich the child grasps 
a new idea; but few have been able so eloquently to describe it, 
as it is done by Mr. Mann. "Mark a child," says he, "when a 
clear, well-defined vivid conception seizes it. The whole nervous 



EXCITING INTEREST IN STUDY. 125 

tissue vibrates. Every muscle leaps. Every joint plays. The 
face becomes auroral. The spirit flashes through the body like 
lightning through a cloud." 

" Observe, too, the blind, the deaf, and the dumb. So strong 
is their inborn desire for knowledge,— such are the amazing 
attractive forces of their minds for it, that although the nat- 
ural inlets, the eye and the ear, are closed, yet they will draw it 
inward, through the solid walls and encasements of the body. 
If the eye be curtained with darkness, it will enter through the 
ear. If the ear be closed in silence, it will ascend along the nerves 
of touch. Every new idea that enters into the presence of the 
sovereign mind, carries offerings of delight with it, to make its 
coming welcome. Indeed, our Maker created us in blank ignor- 
ance, for the very purpose of giving us the boundless, endless 
pleasure of learning new things." 

It is, of course, not to be expected that the same degree of 
pleasure will attend the learner in every acquisition as the 
novelty diminishes, and as he advances in age. The bodily appe- 
tite is less keen in after-life than in childhood, so that the adult 
may never realize again to the full extent the delicious flavors 
which regaled him in his earliest years. Still there will ever be a 
delight in acquisition; and to carry our illustration a little 
further,— as the child is soonest cloyed whose stomach is surfeited 
with dainties, and stimulated with condiments, and pampered 
with sweetmeats, till his taste has lost its acumen and digestion 
becomes a burden; so the mental appetite is soonest destroyed, 
when, under the unskillful teacher, it is overloaded with what it 
can neither digest nor disgorge. The mind may be surfeited; and 
then no wonder if it loathes even the wholesome aliment. Arti- 
ficial stimulants, in the shape of prizes, and honors, and flattery, 
and fear, and shame, may have impaired its functions, so that it 
ceases to act except under their excitement. But all must see 
that these are unnatural conditions, superinduced by erroneous 
treatment. There is still a delight in acquisition, just as soon as 
the faculties are aroused to the effort; and the skillful teacher 
will strive to wake up the mind to find this delight,— and if he 



126 PAGE'S THEORY AND PRACTICE. 

understands bis ^vork, he will scarcely need a stronger incentive. 
If he understands the secret of giving just so much instruction as 
to excite the learner's curiosity, and then to leave him to discover 
and acquire for himself, he will have no necessity to use any other 
means as stimulants to exertion. 

To this might be added that irrepressible curiosity, that all- 
pervading desire to know, which is found in the mind of every 
child. The mind, as if conscious of its high destiny, instinctively 
spreads its unfledged wings in pursuit of knowledge. This, with 
some children, is an all-sufficient stimulant to the most vigorous 
exertion. To this the teacher may safely appeal. Indeed, it is 
a convincing proof of the wisdom as well as the goodness of God, 
that this desire to know, as well as the delight of acquisition, are 
the most active at that early period of childhood, when a Just 
appreciation of the utility of knowledge, and the higher motives 
already detailed, could scarcely find a lodgment in the tender 
mind. It seems to be, therefore, an indisputable dictate of our 
very nature, that both these principles should be early employed 
as incentives. 

If, then, the desire of the approval of parents and teachers,— 
the desireof advancement,— the desire to he useful,— and the desire 
to do right, can be superadded to the natural lofe in the child for 
acquisition, and a natural desire to know, there will, as I believe, 
be but little occasion to look further for incentives to exertion 
in the pupil; and I may venture to add, as a scholium to what has 
already been said, that the teacher who has not yet learned to 
call into exercise these higher motives, and to rely for success 
mainly upon them, and who dares not abandon the system of 
exciting stimulants for fear of a failure, has yet much to learn as 
a true educator of the young. 



CHAPTER IX. 

SCHOOL GOVERNMENT. 

It is not necessary that an^^ space in this work should be 
occupied in speaking of the importance of order in our schools. 
Everybody who has written or spoken on this subject, has con- 
ceded the necessity of obedience on the part of the pupil. '' Order 
IS heaven's first law ; " and it is scarcely more essential to the 
harmony of heaven, than it is to the happiness and success of the 
school. 

If such be the necessity of order in the school, then the ability 
to secure and maintain it is no mean part of the qualification of 
the good teacher. It is lamentable that so many fail in this par- 
ticular; and yet this frequent failure can in most cases be traced 
to some defect in the constitutional temperament, or some defi- 
ciency in the mental or moral culture of the teacher himself. It 
shall be my first object, then, to point out some of the 

SECTION I.— REQUISITES IN THE TEACHER FOR GOOD 
GOVERNMENT. 

I. Self-government.— It has frequently been said that no 
man can govern others till he has learned to govern himself. I 
have no doubt of the truth of this. If an individual is not per- 
fectly self-possessed, his decisions must fail to command respect. 
The self-government of the teacher should be complete, in the 
following particulars : 

1. As to the passion of anger.— The exhibition of anger always 
detracts from the weight of authority. A man under its influence 
is not capable of doing strict justice to his pupils. Before enter- 
ing upon teaching, therefore, a man should somehow obtain the 
mastery over his temper, so that under any provocation he can 
control it. He should consider that in school his patience will 

(127) 



128 PAGE'S THEORY AND PRACTICE. 

often be severely tried. He should not expect, indeed, that thecur- 
rent of affairs in school will for a single day run perfectly smooth. 
He should, therefore, prepare for the worst, and firmly resolve 
that, whatever unpleasant thing shall occur, it shall not take him 
entirely by surprise. Such forethought will give him self-com- 
mand. If, however, from his past experience, and from the 
nature of his temperament, he is satisfied he cannot exercise this 
self-control, he may be assured he is the wrong man to engage in 
teaching. A man who has not acquired thorough ascendancy 
over his own passions, is an unsafe man to be intrusted with the 
government of children. 

2. As to levity and nioroseness of manner. — Either extreme is 
to be avoided. There are some teachers who exhibit such a 
frivolity in all their intercourse with their pupils, that they can 
never command them with authority, or gain their cordial 
respect. This is a grievous fault; and the teacher should at once 
find an antidote for it, by serious reflection upon the responsibil- 
ity of his position. If this will not cure it, nothing else can. 

There are others who are characterized hy sl perpetual peevish- 
ness, so that a pleasant word from them is indeed a strange 
thing. They can never expect to gain the affections of their 
pupils; and without securing the loveoi children, the government 
of them will never be of the right kind. This habit of snappish- 
ness should be broken up at once. 

There are some very young teachers, who sometimes assume 
one or the other of these peculiar modes of address, or perhaps 
both, to be used alternately,— fancying that they will gain popu- 
larity by the one, or give themselves greater authority by the 
other. This is a very mistaken notion; for children have more 
discernment than most men give them credit for, and they 
usually see directly through such a flimsy disguise,— and the 
teacher becomes ridiculous rather than great in their estima- 
tion, whenever he takes any such false position. 

Mr. Abbot, in his "Teacher," states a fact which well illus- 
trates this point. "Many years ago," says he, "when I was a 
child, the teacher of the school where my early studies were per- 



SCHOOL GOVERNMENT. 129 

formed, closed his connection with the establishment, and. after 
a short vacation, another was expected. On the appointed day 
the boys began to collect, some from curiosity, at an early honr, 
and many speculations were started as to the character of the 
new instructor. We were standing near a table with our hats 
on,— and our position, and the exact appearance of the group is 
indelibly fixed on ni}^ memory,— wdien a small and youthful look- 
ing man entered the room and walked up towards us. Supposing 
him to be some stranger, or rather, not making any supposition 
at all, we stood looking at him as he approached, and were 
thunder-struck at hearing him accost us with a stern voice, and 
sterner brow:— 'Take off your hats! Take off your hats, and 
go to your seats.' The conviction immediately rushed upon our 
minds that this must be the new teacher. The first emotion was 
that of surprise, and the second was that of the ludicrous; 
though I believe we contrived to smother the laugh until we got 
out into the open air." 

The true rule is to act the part which is agreeable to nature. 
The teacher having gained the self-command just insisted upon, 
and having in him the spirit of kindness and a desire to be useful, 
should assume nothing unnatural for effect. His manner should 
be truly dignified, but courteous. 

3. As to his treatment of those pupils that are marked by 
some peculiarity.— There w^iW usually be some pupils who are very 
backward, and perhaps very dull,— or who may have some phj^s- 
ical defect, or some mental eccentricity. The teacher should be 
able to govern himself in all his remarks concerning such pupils. 
He should avoid all allusion to such singularities before the 
school; and it is the height of injustice — I was about tasayof 
malevolence— for him ever to use those low and degrading epi- 
thets so often found upon the teacher's tongue,— such as dunce, 
thickskull, and the like. Is it not misfortune enough for a child 
to be backward or dull, without having the pain and mortifi- 
cation increased by the cruelty of an unfeeling teacher? The 
teacher should take a special interest in such children; he 
should endeavor to enter into the feehngs of their parents, and 
T. p.— 9 



130 PAGE'S THEORY AND PRACTICE. 

to treat them in such a way as to encourage rather than crush 
them. 

II. A CONFIDENCE IN HIS ABILITY TO GOVERN.— We cau generally 
do what we firml3' believe we can do. At any rate, a man is more 
likely to succeed in any enterprise, when he has the feeling of self- 
reliance. The teacher, by reflection upon the importance of good 
government to his success, and by a careful study of the means 
to be employed and the motives to be presented, should be able 
to bring himself to the determination to have good order in his 
school, and so fully to believe he can have it, that his pupils shall 
detect no misgivings in him on this point. Whenever they dis- 
cover that he has doubts of his success in governing, they will be 
far more ready to put his skill to the test. It would be better 
that a young teacher should decline to take a difficult school, 
rather than enter it without the full belief of his ability' to suc- 
ceed. I would not wish to be understood by these remarks to be 
encouraging an unreasonable and blind presumption. A con- 
fidence in one's ability should be founded upon a reasonable 
estinmte of his powers, compared with the difficulties to be over- 
come. What I recommend is that the teacher should carefully 
weigh the difficulties, and candidly judge of his own resources, 
and then undertake nothing which he thinks is beyond his abil- 
ity. If, after this, he believes he can succeed, other things being 
equal, success is almost certain. 

III. Just views of government.— 1. It is not tyranny, exer- 
cised to please the one who governs, or to promote his own con- 
venience. The despot commands for the sake of being obeyed. 
But government in its proper sense, is an arrangement for the gen- 
eral good,— for the benefit of the governed as well as of the ruler. 
That is not good judgment which seeks any other object. The 
teacher should so view the matter; and in establishing any regu- 
lations in school, he should always inquire whether they are sug- 
gested by a selfish regard to his own ease, or whether they spring 
from a sincere and disinterested wish to promote the improve- 
ment of the school. 

2. He should see the necessity of making the government 



SCHOOL GOVERNMENT. 131 

uniform: that is, the same from day to day. If he punishes to-day 
what he tolerates to-morrow, he cannot expect the cordial respect 
of his pupils. Some teachers, not having- learned the art of self- 
government, take counsel too much of their own feelings. To-day 
they are in good health and spirits, and their faces are clothed in 
sunshine; they can smile at anj^thing. To-morrow, suffering 
under bad digestion, or the want of exercise, or the want of sleep, 
the thunder-storm hovers about their brow, readj^ to burst upon 
the first offender. Woe to the luckless wight who does not season- 
ably discover this change in the condition of the weather. A 
teacher cannot long respect himself who is thus capricious; he 
may be sure his school will not long respect him. 

3. He should so view government as to make it equal ; that 
is, equal in its application to the whole school,— the large as 
well as small scholars, the males as well as females. This is often 
a great fault with teachers. They raise up a sort of aristocracy 
in their schools, a privileged class, a miniature nobility. They 
will insist that the little boys and girls shall abstain from certain 
practices,— whispering, for instance,— and most promptl}' punish 
the offenders, while the^^ tolerate the same thing among the 
larger pupils. This is cowardly in itself, and as impolitic as it 
is cow^ardly. The teacher makes a great mistake who begins his 
government with the small children, in the hope of frightening 
the larger ones into obedience. He should have the manliness 
and the justice to begin with the larger pupils; the smaller ones 
never resist, when authority is established with those above them. 
Besides this, the very class who are thus indulged, are the very 
ones w^ho soonest despise, and justly too, the authority of the 
teacher. 

He should make his government impartial in every respect. 
He should have no favorites — no preferences, based upon the 
outward circumstances of the child, his family, or his personal 
attractions, and the like. The rich and the poor should be alike 
to the teacher. He should remember that each child has a soul ; 
and it is with the soul, and not with the wealth of this world, 
that he has to do. He should remember that a gem, as bright 



132 PAGE'S THEORY AXD PRACTICE. 

as a sunbeam, is often concealed under a rough exterior. It 
should be his work, nay his delight — to bring out this gem from 
its hiding-place, and apply to it the polish of a "workman that 
needeth not to be ashamed." 

IV. Just views of the goveened.— Notwithstanding the 
imperfection of human nature, as developed in the young, they 
have some redeeming qualities. They are intelligent and reason- 
able beings. They have more or less love of approbation ; they 
have affection, and, above all, they have a moral sense. All 
these qualities are considerably developed before they enter the 
school. The teacher should remember this, and prepare himself 
to address, as far as may be, all these. Love of approbation, as 
we have before seen, is not an unworthy motive to be addressed, 
and it is well known that many children are very easily controlled 
by it. It is not the highest motive, to be sure, nor is it the low- 
est. The affection for a teacher, which many children will exer- 
cise, is one of the most powerful instrumentalities in governing 
them with ease. The conscience, early trained, is all-powerful. 
I allude to these principles of action once more, in order to say 
that the peculiar character of each should be well studied by the 
teacher. He should understand the human mind so well as to be 
able to find the avenues to these better parts of the child's 
nature, remembering that whenever several ways are presented 
of doing the same thing, it is always wise to choose the best. 

V. Decision and firmness.— By decision, I mean a readiness 
to determine and to act in any event just as duty seems to dic- 
tate; a willingness to take the responsibihty just as soon as the 
way is plain. By firmness, is meant that fixedness of purpose 
which resolutely carries out a righteous decision. Both of these 
qualities are essential to good government in the teacher. Much 
time is often lost by a teacher's vacillating when action is more 
important. Besides, if the pupils discover that the teacher hesi- 
tates, and dreads to take any responsibility, they very soon lose 
their respect for him. I would not urge that a teacher should 
act liastily. He never should decide till he is confident he decides 
right ; any delay is better than hasty error. But his delay, in all 



SCHOOL GOVERNMENT. 133 

matters of government, should have reference to a true knowl- 
edge of his duty; when that is clearly known, he should be 
decided. 

Man}^ teachers suffer in their government, for want of firmness. 
They act upon the principle of personal convenience, as did the 
unjust judge mentioned in the parable. "And he would not for 
awhile ; but afterwards he said within himself. Though I fear not 
God nor regard man ; yet because this widow troubleth me, I will 
arise and avenge her, lest by her continual coming she weary 
me." How often we hear something like this in the schoolroom. 
^' May I go and drink? "—says James, in a peculiarly imploring 
tone. "No,'' says the teacher, promptlj^, and evidently without 
any reflection as to the decision he has made. James very com- 
posedly sits dow^n, eyeing the countenance of the teacher expres- 
sively, as m.uch as to say, " I'll try you again soon." Before long 
he observes the teacher quite busy with a class, and he again 
pops the question: "May I go and drink?" Stung at the 
moment with impatience at the interruption, the teacher answers 
instantly and emphatically, "No, no, James, sit down." James 
still watches his teacher's expression, and cannot discover there 
any signs of a mind seeking the path of duty, and he silently 
thinks to himself, " The third time never fails." So, after a min- 
ute or two, when the teacher is somewhat puzzled with a knotty 
question, and is on the point of nibbing a pen besides, — "Mayl 
go and drink, Sir?'- again rings upon the teacher's ears. " Yes, 
yes, yes! do go along; I suppose you'll keep asking till you 
get it." 

Now^ James goes to drink, and then returns to philosophize 
upon this matter, perhaps as follows: — "! don't believe he 
stopped to think whether I needed drink or not; therefore, here- 
after I shall never believe he really means 720, when he says it. 
He acts without thought. I have also found that if I will but 
ask several times, I shall get it. So I shall know how to proceed 
next time."— I do not know that any child w^ould express this 
thought in so many words; but the impression upon his mind is 
none the less distinct. 



134 PAGE'S THEORY AND PRACTICE. 

Now the teacher should carefully consider the question 
addressed to him. How long since this child had water? Can 
it be necessary for him to drink so often? Then let the answer 
be given mildly, but decidedly — "No, James." The very man- 
ner, quite likely, will settle the question, so that James will not 
ask again. The answer once given should be firmly adhered to. 
It would even be better that James should suffer for the want of 
water than for the want of confidence in his teacher's firmness. 
In this way the teacher would establish his word with the school 
in a very few days; and his pupils would soon learn that with 
him "no means no," and "yes means yes" — a matter of no 
small importance to the teacher of a school. 

VI. Deep moral principle. — The teacher should ever be a 
conscientious man ; and in nothing is this more necessary than in 
the exercise of good government. In this matter the teacher can 
never respect himself when he acts from caprice or selfishness. 
His inquiry should be. What is right? What is justice — justice 
to my pupils — to myself? And if he could add to moral obliga- 
tion the high sanctions of religious principle, and could habit- 
ually and sincerely turn his thoughts to his Maker, with the 
heartfelt inquiry— what wilt thou have me to do? — then he would 
seldom err in the discharge of this trust. His pupils, seeing that 
he acted from fixed and deep principle, would respect his honesty, 
even if he should cross^ their desires. 

Having now dwelt at some length upon the requisites in the 
teacher for good government, I shall next proceed to present 
some of the 

SECTION II.— MEANS OF SECURING GOOD ORDER. 

I. Be careful as to the first impression you make.— It is an 
old proverb, that "what is well begun is half done." This holds 
true in school-keeping, and particularly in school-government. The 
young study character very speedily and very accurately. Per- 
haps no one pupil could express in words an exact estimate of a 
teacher's character after a week's acquaintance; but yet the 
whole school has received an impression which is not far from the 



SCHOOL GOVERNMENT. 135 

truth. A teacher, then, is very unwise who attempts to assume 
to be anything which he is not. He should ever be frank; and in 
commencing- a school he should begin as he can hold out. Any 
assumption of an authoritative tone is especially ill-judged. The 
pupils at once put themselves in an attitude of resistance when 
this is perceived by them . 

A teacher should ever remember that among children— how- 
ever it may be among adults— I'e.sp^^c^ always precedes attach- 
ment. If he would gain the love of the children, he must first be 
worthy of their respect. He should therefore act deliberately, and 
always conscientiously. He should be firm but never petulant. 
It is very important at the outset that he should be truly cour- 
teous and affable. It is much wiser to request than to command, 
at least until the request has been disregarded. There are usually 
two ways of doing a thing,— a gentle and a rough way. '' John, 
go and shut that door," in a gruff tone, is oneway to have a door 
closed. John will undoubtedly go and shutthe door— perhaps with 
a slam, — but he will not thank the teacher for the rough tones used 
in commanding it. Now it costs no more time or breath to say, 
"John, I'll thank you if 3^ou will shut that door.*' Most cheer- 
fully will John comply with the request, and he is grateful that he 
has heard these tones of kindness. If he could but know the 
teacher's wishes afterward, he would gladly perform them 
unasked. I would by no means recommend the adoption of the 
fawning tone of the sycophant, by the teacher. He should be 
manly and dignified; but the language of that courtesy which 
springs from real kindness, and which ever becomes the gentle- 
man, is always the most suitable as well as most expedient for 
him. 

II. Avoid exhibiting or entertaining a suspicious spirit.— 
It is a maxim of law, that one charged with crime, is always to 
be presumed innocent until proved guilty. This should be a 
maxim with the teacher who would govern well. There is no 
more direct way of making a school vicious, than by showing 
them that you suspect they are so. A good reputation is dear 
to all ; and even a bad boy will be restrained from wicked acts as 



136 PAGE'S THEORY AND PRACTICE. 

long as be thinks you give bim credit for good intentions. But 
if be finds tliat be bas lost your good opinion, be feels tbat be lias 
notbing furtber to lose by being as bad as you suspect bim to be. 
A teacber is wise, therefore, if be tries to see something good even 
in a vicious pupil. It may be, as it often bas been, the means of 
saving such a pupil. I have known a very depraved boy entirely 
reformed in school, by his teacher's letting him know that he had 
noticed some good traits in his character. He afterwards told 
his teacher that "he had been so often suspected to be a villain, 
that he had almost come to the conclusion that he would be one; 
but that, when be found one man who could do bim the justice to 
give bim credit for a few good feelings— (for be knew he had 
them) — be at once determined to show that man tbat his confi- 
dence had not been misplaced; and that be would sooner die than 
knowingly offend the only person who ever had understood bim." 
It is wise sometimes, not onl^' to withhold the expression of 
suspicion, but to give some token of your confidence to the pupil 
who is troublesome. Intrust bim with some errand involving 
responsibility, or assign to bim some duty by way of assistance 
to yourself, and very likely you will gain his good will ever after. 
This is founded upon the well-known principle in human nature 
acted upon by Dr. Franklin, who, when be would gain bis enemy, 
asked bim to do him a favor. 

III. As SOON AS POSSIBLE GIVE REGULAR AND FULL EMPLOY- 
MENT.— It is an old proverb that "idleness is the mother of mis- 
chief." The nursery hymn also contains a living truth — 

"And Satan finds some mischief still 
For idle hands to do." 

It is the law of a child's nature to be active; and as the' teacber 
is placed in the school to give direction to such minds, he can 
hardly complain of their going upon forbidden objects unless he 
seasonably provides something better for them to do. 

Very early, then, the teacber should endeavor to classify his 
school and furnish constant and full employment — either of 
study, recitation, or relaxation— for every hour in the da3\ The 



SCHOOL GOVERNMENT. 137 

teacher should have a plan when he opens the school, and the 
sooner it is carried into full operation the better.* Besides, when 
a teacher has given employment, he has a right to insist upon 
the pupil being engaged in study. Nobody will question this 
right; and it is far more profitable to require a positive duty 
than to enjoin a negative,— such as abstinence from whispering 
or from mischief in general. 

ly. Make but few rules.— It is a very common thing for 
teachers to embarrass themselves by a long code of requirements 
and prohibitions. Some go so far as to write out a system of 
laws, and, annexing to each the penalty for its infringement, post 
them up in a conspicuous place in the schoolroom. Others con- 
tent themselves with a verbal announcement of them, and rely 
upon the memories of the pupils to retain the details of them and 
to govern themselves accordingly. This, it seems to me is a great 
mistake. The multiplicit}^ of specific rules for the government of a 
school, will naturally lead to a multiplicity of offenses. Children 
will be confused by the varying and sometimes conflicting 
demands of a formidable code of regulations, and in endeavoring 
to avoid Scylla will be likely to fall into Charybdis. It is believed 
by some honest statesmen that "the world has been governed 
too much;" and it is often alleged in support of this belief that 
successful compliance with the laws requires far more wisdom 
than was displayed in making them ; that is, the science of obe- 
dience is far more abstruse than the science of legislation! 
Whether this be true in the civil world or not, I shall not attempt 
to decide ; I will only say that such has too often been the fact in 
,the schoolroom. 

It is in my opinion the part of wisdom, and I think also the 
teaching of experience, that it is best to make but few rules. The 
great rule of duty, quoted once before, "Do unto others as you 
would that they should do to you," comprises quite enough to 
begin with. The direction— Do right, is a very comprehensive 
one. There is in children an ability to distinguish between right 
and wrong, upon which the teacher may ever rely; and by insist- 

* See Chapter X of this work. 



138 PAGE'S THEORY AND PRACTICE. 

ing upon this as the standard, he daily brings into exercise the 
conscience of the child, who is called upon to decide, is this right? 
Besides, if a school is to be governed by a code of laws, the pupils 
will act upon the principle that whatever is not proscribed is 
admissible. Consequently without inquiring whether an act is 
right, their only inquiry will be, is it forbidden ? Now no teacher 
was ever yet so wise as to make laws for every case; the conse- 
quence is, he is daily perplexed with unforeseen troubles, or with 
some ingenious evasions of his inflexible code. In all this matter 
the worst feature is the fact, that the child judges of his acts by 
the law of the teacher rather than by the law of his conscience^ 
and is thus in danger of perverting and blunting the moral sense. 

To this it may be added that the teacher will often find himself 
very much perplexed in attempting to judge the acts of his pupils 
by fixed laws, and in awarding to all violations of them a 
prescribed penalty. Cases will frequently occur in which two 
scholars will offend against a given prohibition, with altogether 
different intentions,— the one having a good motive and forget- 
ting the law; the other with the law in his mind and having a 
wicked design to violate it. Now the written code with its pre- 
scribed penalty allows the teacher no discretion. He must main- 
tain his law and punish both offenders, and thus violate his own 
sense of justice; or he must pass both by, and thus violate his 
word. He cannot excuse the one and punish the other, as justice 
would evidently demand, without setting at naught his own laws. 

An example will illustrate this point. A teacher has made a 
rule that "any child who whispers without leave shall be fer- 
uled.'' Now two Httle boys sit side by side. William is an ami- 
able, obedient, and diligent little boy, who has never violated 
intentionally any wish of his teacher; while Charles is a sour- 
tempered, vicious, unprincipled fellow, who a dozen times within 
a week has sought to make his teacher trouble. Little John, who 
sits near to William, drops his pencil, and it falls under William's 
desk. John looks for his pencil on the right and left of his seat, 
grows anxious and perplexed. William has noticed him, and he 
carefully picks up the pencil, while he perhaps is looking for it in 



SCHOOL GOVERNMENT. 139 

another direction, — and with the kind intention of reheving his 
neighbor's anxiety and restoring his property, he touclies his 
elbow, and softly whispers, "Here is yonr pencil, John,'' — then 
immediately resumes his own studies, and is probably entirely 
unconscious that he has violated any law. At the same instant 
the artful Charles, half concealing his face with his hand, with his 
wary eye turned to the teacher, wdllfully addresses another pupil 
on some point in no way connected with study or duty. The 
teacher sees both these cases, and calls the offenders to his desk. 
The one trembles, and wonders w^hat he has done amiss, while 
the other perhaps prepares himself to deny his offense, and thus 
to add falsehood to his other sins. The rule awards to both the 
ferule. It is applied to Charles with energy, and with the convic- 
tion that he deserves it; but I ask, can a man with any sense of 
justice raise his hand to punish William. If so, I see not how he 
can ever again hold converse with his own conscience. Yet the 
rule allows him no discretion. He must violate either the rule or 
his conscience; and too of ten in such cases he chooses the latter 
alternative. 

Now my advice is, make but few rules, and never multiply 
them till circumstances demand it. The rule of right will usually 
be sufficient without any special legislation; and it has this 
advantage, that it leaves the teacher the largest discretion. 

I have been thus full on this point, because so many fail here, 
and especially young teachers. It has cost many a young 
teacher much bitter experience to make this discovery for him- 
self, and I have desired to save others who may hereafter engage 
in teaching, the pain and perplexity which they may so easily 
and so safely avoid. 

For similar reasons, I should also urge that the teacher should 
avoid the too common practice of threatening in his school. 
Threatening is usually resorted to as a means of frightening chil- 
dren into their duty, —and, too often, threats are made without 
any expectation of a speedy necessity either to execute or disre- 
gard them. The consequence is, they are usually more extrava- 
gant than the reality, and the teacher's word soon passes at a 



140 PAGE'S THEORY AND PRACTICE. 

discount ; his threats are viewed as very much like the barking of 
a dog who has no intention to bite. As threatening- is moreover 
the language of impatience, it almost always leads to a loss of 
respect. 

V. Wake up mind in the school, and in the district. — There 
is usually but very little trouble in government where the schol- 
ars are deeply engaged in their studies or school exercises, and 
especially if at the same time the feelings of the parents are 
enlisted. To this end I would recommend that early attention 
should be given to some efforts to wake up mind, such as have 
been described in a former section of this work. It will be found, 
when skillfully conducted, one of the most successful instrumen- 
talities in aid of good order and good feeling in the school. 

An ingenious teacher, too, may introduce other varieties into 
the school exercises, and thus sometimes turn the attention of 
discontented pupils from some evil design to give him trouble. 
So long as the teacher keeps steadily the main object of his school 
in view, namely, progress in the studies, he is excusable if occa- 
sionally, to break up monotony and excite a deeper interest, 
he introduces a well-considered new plan of study or of recitation. 
Indeed, much of his success will depend upon his power to do this, 
and in nothing will its advantages appear more obviously than 
in the government of the school. A great portion of the disorder 
and insubordination in our schools, has its origin in a want of 
interest in the school exercises. He is the successful teacher, and 
the successful disciplinarian who can excite and maintain the 
necessary interest. 

As one of these varieties, I may mention the exercise of vocal 
music in school. I have already alluded to it. As a means of 
keeping alive the interest in a school, it is very important. Music 
is the language of the heart, and though capable of being grossly 
perverted (and what gift of God is not?) — its natural tendency is 
to elevate the affections, to soothe the passions, and to refine the 
taste. 

<' The Germans have a proverb," says Bishop Potter, "which 
has come down from the davs of Luther, that where music is not 



SCHOOL GOVERyMLXT. 141 

the devil enters. As David took his harp, when he would cause 
the evil spirit to depart from Saul, so the Germans employ it to 
expel the obduracy from the hearts of the depraved. In their 
schools for the reformation of juvenile offenders (and the same 
remark might be applied to those of our own country), music has 
been found one of the most effectual means of inducing docility 
among the stubborn and vicious. It would seem that so long as 
any remains of humanity linger in the heart, it retains its sus- 
ceptibility to music. And as proof that music is more powerful 
for good than for evil, is it not worthy of profound consideration 
that, in all the intimations which the Bible gives us of a future 
w^orld, music is associated only with the employments and happi- 
ness of Heaven?" 

Almost any teacher can introduce music into his school; 
because if he cannot sing, he will always find that it will only 
require a little encouragement to induce the scholars to under- 
take to conduct it themselves. It will consume but very little 
time, and it is always that time which, if not employed in sing- 
ing would otherwise be unemplo^^ed or misemployed. It is the 
united testimony of all who have judiciously introduced sing- 
ing into their schools, that it is among the best instrumental- 
ities for the promotion of good feeling and good order. 

VI. Visit the pareiNts of your scholars.— I shall more 
particularly enjoin this, when I speak of the teacher's relation to 
his patrons [chap, xi.], but I cannot forbear in this place to urge 
it upon the teacher as one of the means of securing good order 
in school. A great deal of the insubordination in our schools, 
arises from some misunderstanding, or some dislike entertained 
by the parent towards the teacher, and spoken of in the presence 
of the children. Whatever the pupils hear at home, they will 
be likely to exemplify in school. It should be the teacher's first 
object to become acquainted with the parent, and to let him 
understand, by a personal interview, all his plans and aims for 
the improvement of the school. This can be done best at the 
parent's own fireside. It has often happened, that by a friendly 
visit of an hour by the teacher, the parent's heart has been 



142 PAGE'S THEORY AND PRACTICE. 

softened, his prejudices removed, his co-operation gained, and 
the cheerful and cordial obedience of his children in school 
secured. 

These visits should of course be made in the true spirit of the 
teacher. They should be made in the honest desire of his heart 
to render his labors more successful. A visit made in such a 
spirit seldom fails to make the parents personal friends ever 
after; and of course, in case of a collision afterwards between 
him and their children, this is a very important point. 

VII. Registeks of credits.— Registers of the standing of 
pupils in their schools and their classes, are very highly recom- 
mended by some, whose experience is entitled to confidence. I am 
inclined to place this among the means of securing good order. I 
would recommend, however, that they should be registers of 
credits only. Some recommend the use of ''hlack marks,'' that is, 
the record of prominent faults and perhaps of punishments. My 
own experience teaches me that this is unwise. The teacher 
should not show a willingness to record and publish the faults of 
a pupil. He should, on the contrary, show a tender regard for his 
reputation. Besides, the child is less likely to be mindful of his 
duty, when his reputation is already blackened by his teacher. 
If registers are to be kept at all, they should record the successes 
and virtues of the child rather than his failures and faults. And 
if, at the end of a week or a month, he is furnished with an 
abstract for the inspection of his parents, let it be so much of 
good character as he has earned for himself during the specified 
time. 

I confess I am less sanguine than many others as to the utility 
of the register, either as an incentive to obedience or diligence; 
but if used at all, I think the above restriction is highly impor- 
tant. 

YHI. Avoid governing too much.— By this I would be under- 
stood to urge upon the teacher the fact that his main business in 
school is instruction and not government. Government is a 
means and not the end of school-keeping. A very judicious and 
practical teacher— Mr. R. S. Howard — has well remarked: "The 



SCHOOL GOVERNMENT. 143 

real object to be accomplished, the real end to be obtained in 
school, is to assist the pupil in acquiring knowledge — to educate 
the mind and heart. To effect this, good order is very necessary. 
But when order is made to take the place of industry, and disci- 
pline the place of instruction, where the time of both teacher and 
pupils is mostly spent in w^atching each other, very little good 
will be accomplished." 

It is a mistake that many teachers fall into, that they seem to 
regard government as their chief occupation; and, as we should 
naturally expect in such cases, it is often very poorly exercised. 
That is not the best government which is maintained as a mat- 
ter of formal business. The noiseless under-current is far more 
efficient. I have always noticed that men govern best when they 
do not seem to govern; and those who make most effort and 
bustle about it themselves, are pretty sure to have the most 
boisterous schools. 

I once in company with a friend officially visited a school where 
the teacher, a man of strong frame — six feet high, and with lungs 
in proportion.— was laboring to keep order. Every word he 
uttered was in a stentorian voice which would have been painful 
to the pupils in a quiet room ; hence, they took care to keep up a 
constant clattering of books, slates, and rulers, mingled with the 
constant hum of their own voices, as if for self-defense. It seemed 
to be a mighty effort of eac^h party to rise if possible above the 
noise of the other. "Silence! Order! I say," was constantly 
ejaculated in a voice that was almost sufficient, as Shakspeare's 
Hamlet would say, " to split the ears of the groundlings." 

One of the most ludicrous scenes I ever witnessed, occurred in 
this school during an exercise in English grammar. The class 
occupied the back seats, while the teacher stood b^^ the desk in 
front of the school. The children between the teacher and his 
class were variously einployed,— some manufacturing paper fly- 
boxes, some whittling the benches — (it was in New England); 
some were trying their skill at a spit-ball warfare; others were 
making voyages of exploration beneath the seats. The school, 
consisting of some seventy pupils, were as busy as the occupants 



144 PAGE'S THEORY AND PRACTICE. 

of an ant-hill. The sentence to be parsed was, "A good boy loves 
study." No written description can present the scene as it was 
acted in real life. 

It should be borne in mind that every word spoken by the 
teacher, whether to the class or to the school, was in a tone of 
voice which might have been heard at least an eighth of a mile, 
and that every exclamation was accompanied by several ener- 
getic thumps of a large oaken '^rule'' upon the lid of his desk. 
The language of the teacher is in italics. '' Mary, parse .4." "A 
is an indefinite "— " Silence! Order there! "— '' article, and is pre- 
fixed to" — "/o727j/"— "No, sir, it is prefixed to^'—'' Martha, 
Martha! sit up"— "it is prefixed to— boy."— "i?7^/z^."—" (rood, 
72ext." — " Good is an adjective," — " Or^ier, Order, Order!'' — 
thump, thump, thump!— "(zo on, go on, I hear jou.^"— thump 
thump! — "and belongs to'' — '^ Speak louder! Sit up there! 
What are you doing? And belongs to?''—'^ boy."—" The Rule. 
The Kule! / ,saj."— Here several children looked earnestly at 
the piece of timber he held in his hand. — "T/ze Rule, sir, the 
Rule'' — thump, thump! — " You've got it in your hand," vocifer- 
ated a little harmless-looking fellow on the front seat, while the 
scholar proceeded to recite the rule. — "Adjectives belong to" — 
^'Lazy, lazy fellow! sit up there.''— Here the class smiled, and the 
scholar completed his rule, asserting, however, that "adjectives 
belong to nouns," and not to '■dazy fellows," as the class seemed 
to understand the master to teach. Word after word was parsed 
in this way (a way of teaching our language, which, if we could 
know it had been practiced at the erection of Babel, would suffi- 
ciently account for that memorable confusion of tongues without 
the intervention of a miracle), till the teacher, nearly exhausted 
by this strange combination of mental, oral, and manual labor, 
very much to the relief of all, vociferated ''That'll do!" and the 
scene was changed. 

At the close of the afternoon, we were told that " it was a very 
hard school, that it was almost impossible to keep order, and 
that he should be discoui'aged were it not that he saw a manifest 
improvement within a few days past ! " 



SCHOOL GOVERNMENT. 145 

Now this teacher made the school what it was, by his own 
manner. He would have done the same with any school. He 
taught in the most effectual way the scienceand art of confusion; 
and notwithstanding the hard name he gave his school, he was 
emphatically the most disorderly and uoisy member of it. 

There was a change. On another day, accompanied by the 
same friend, we presented ourselves at the door of this same 
room for admittance. We heard no sound as we approached the 
entrance, and almost began to suspect we should find there was 
no school within. We knocked; and presently, without our hear- 
ing the footstep of the person who approached, the door opened, 
and we passed in. The children looked up a moment as we 
entered, and then bent their eyes upon their lessons. The teacher 
softly handed us seats, and then proceeded with the recitation. 
His manner was quiet and deliberate, and the school was orderly 
and busy. He had no rule in his hand, no heavy boots on his 
feet (he had exchanged them for slippers on entering the school), 
and no other means of giving emphasis to his words. He kindly 
requested, — never commanded, — and everything seemed to pre- 
sent the strongest contrast with the former scene. The hour of 
dismission arrived, and the scholars quietly laid by their books, 
and as quietly walked out of the house, and all was still. 

'-'■ How have you secured this good order?" said we to the 
teacher. "I really do not know," said he with a smile, "I have 
said nothing about order." "But have you had no difficulty 
from noisy scholars?" "A little at first; but in a day or two 
they seemed to become quiet, and we have not been troubled 
since." 

Now the secret was that this latter teacher had learned to gov- 
ern himself. His own manner gave character to the school. So 
it will ever be. A man will govern more by his manner than in 
any other way. 

There is, too, such a thing as keeping a school too still by 
over-government. A man of firm nerve can, by keeping up a con- 
stant constraint both in himself and pupils, force a deathlike 
silence upon his school. You may hear a pin drop at any time, 

T. P.— 10 



146 PAGE'S THEORY AND PRACTICE. 

and the figure of every child is as if molded in cast iron. But, 
be it remembered, this is the stillness of constraint, not the still- 
ness of activity. It is an unhealthy state both of body and mind, 
and when attained by the most vigilant care of the teacher, is a 
condition scarcely to be desired. There should be silence in 
school, a serene and soothing quiet; but it should if possible be 
the quiet of cheerfulness and agreeable devotion to study, rather 
than the "palsy of fear." 



Thus far I have confined myself to those qualifications in the 
teacher, and to those means which, under ordinary circumstances 
and in most districts, would in my opinion secure good order in 
our schools. With the qualifications I have described in the 
mental and moral condition of the teacher, and the means and 
suggestions above detailed — combined, I believe a very large 
majority of our schools could be most successfully governed 
without any appeal to fear or force. 

But as some schools are yet in a very bad state, requiring 
more than ordinary talents and skill to control them; and as very 
many of those who must teach for a long time to come have not, 
and cannot be expected to haA^e all the qualifications desci'ibed, 
and much less the moral power insisted on, it is unreasonable to 
expect, taking human nature as it is, and our teachers as they 
are, that all can govern their schools without some appeals to 
the lower motives of children, and some resort to coercion as 
an instrumentality. I should leave this discussion very incom- 
plete, therefore, were I not to present my views upon the sub- 
ject of 

SECTION III. — PUNISHMENTS. 

As a great deal has been written and spoken upon the subject 
of school punishments, I deem it important that the term, as I 
intend to use it, should be defined at the outset. I submit the 
following definition : 

Punishment is pain inflicted upon the mind or body of an 
individual by the authority to which he is subject; with a 



SCHOOL GOVERNMENT. 147 

YIEW EITHER TO REFORM HIM, OR TO DETER OTHERS FROM THE 
COMMISSION OP OFFENSES, OR BOTH. 

It is deemed essential to the idea of punishment that the 
inflietor have legitimate authority over the subject of it, — other- 
wise the act is an act of usurpation. It is also essential that the 
inflietor should have a legitimate object in view, such as the 
reformation of the individual or of the community in which his 
example has exerted an influence, — otherwise the act becomes 
an abuse of power. Infliction for the purpose of retaliation for 
an insult or injury, is not punishment ; it is revenge. Whenever, 
therefore, a teacher resorts to such infliction to gratify his tem- 
per, or to pay off, as it is expressed in common language, the bad 
conduct of a pupil, without any regard to his reformation or the 
prevention of similar offenses in the school, the pain he inflicts is 
not punishment; it is cruelty. Nerj great importance is to be 
attached to the motive in this matter; because the same inflic- 
tion upon the same individual and for the same offense, may 
either be just and proper punishment, or it may be the most 
unjustifiable and revengeful abuse, according to the motive of 
the inflietor. 

The authority to inflict punishment in general, is either by 
the constitution of God or of civil society. "The punishment of 
the faults and offenses of children by the parent," says Dr. Web- 
ster, "is by virtue of the right of government with which the 
parent is invested by God himself." The right to punish the 
offenses of children while at school, is by the common law vested 
in the teacher, as the representative of the parent for the time 
being. It is the declaration of this law, as interpreted from time 
immemorial, that the teacher is in loco parentis — in place of 
the parent. 

Some have alleged that fear and shame, the two principles 
addressed by punishment, are among the lowest in our nature; 
and have hence endeavored to show that punishment is always 
inexpedient, if not indeed always wrong. To this I answer, that 
both fear and shame are incorporated in our nature by God him- 
self; and hence I infer they are there for a wise purpose. I find, 



148 PAGE'S THEORY AND PRACTICE. 

moreover, that God himself, in His Avord and in His provi- 
dence, does appeal to both of these principles; and hence I 
infer that punishment in the abstract is not wrong:, and after 
the higher motives have been addressed, not altogether inexpe- 
dient. 

Living in a commnnity as we do, where the right of punish- 
ment in general, is assumed by our government, and the right of 
teachers to punish is conceded by our laws, 1 do not feel called 
upon to establish the right by argument ; I shall assume that the 
teacher has the right to punish in the sense in which I have 
defined punishment,— and shall therefore proceed to consider the 
various kinds of punishments used in our schools, and to distin- 
guish those which are justifiable from those which are not; and 
also to consider some of the conditions and limitations of their 
use. 

In preparing the way to do this, I may remark that punish- 
ments consist of two classes. 1. Those which address themselves 
directly to the mind; as privation from privileges, loss of liberty', 
degradation, some act of humiliation, reproof, and the like. 2. 
Those which address the mind through the body ; as the imposi- 
tion of a task— labor, for instance,— requiring the pupil to take 
some painful attitude, infiicting bodily chastisement, etc. 

I have mentioned these two classes for the purpose of calling- 
attention to the fact, that there are those who approve of the 
first class, and at the same time denounce the second, scouting the 
idea of reaching the mind through the senses of the body. This 
seems to me, however, to indicate a want.of attention to the laws 
of our being; for in the economy of nature we are made at every 
point sensitive to pain as a means of guarding against injury. 
Why has the Creator studded the entire surface of our bodies 
with the extremities of nerves, whose function is to carry to the 
brain with lightning speed the intelligence of the approach of 
danger? And why should this intelligence be transmitted, if its 
object is not to influence the will, either to withdraw the suffering 
part from immediate danger, or to avoid those objects which 
cause the pain? The mind, then, by the economy of nature, or 



SCHOOL GOVERNMENT. 149 

« 
rather by the arrangement of God, is capable of being influenced 
through the bodily sensations ; and those who deny this, either 
do not observe attentively, or, observing, do not reason fairly 
as to the laws of our being. With these preliminary observa- 
tions, I now proceed to consider. 

1. Improper punishments. — Some punishments are always 
wrong, or at least always inexpedient. The infliction of them 
either implies a wrong feeling on the part of the teacher, or it 
promises no wholesome result on the part of the pupil. I shall 
mention in detail : 1. Those that from their nature excite the feel- 
ing in the pupil, that an indignity has been committed against 
his person. No man is ready to forgive another for wringing his 
nose. There is almost a universal sentiment that this organ is 
specially exempted from such insult. Nearly the same feeling 
exists as to pinching or pulling the ear, or twisting the hair, or 
snapping the forehead. Each child feels that these parts of his per- 
son are not to be trifled with, and the feeling is natural and proper. 
Now, though it is not common for teachers to wring the noses of 
their pupils, it is very common for them to do each of the other 
things enumerated. I have often seen such punishments, but I 
think I never saw any good come of them. The pupil always 
looked as if the teacher had done despite toward his person. 
Whenever I have seen the teacher twist the locks of a child's hair 
about his finger till the tears would start in the eye, I have sup- 
posed the feelings called forth were anything but desirable, — 
anything but favorable to reformation. A pupil must love his 
teacher very strongly, to be able to keep his temper from rising 
under such circumstances; and there is great doubt whether 
either of these punishments does anything to secure cheerful 
obedience in the child one time in a hundred ; probably in ninety- 
nine cases in the hundred the evil passions are very much 
strengthened by them. Besides, these are undignified modes of 
punishment. They savor so much of a weak and childish impa- 
tience, that the pupils find it hard to respect a man, much more 
to love him, who will stoop to so small a way of giving vent to 
his angry feelings. Snapping the forehead is subject to strong 



150 PAGE'S THEORY AND PRACTICE. 

physiological objections ; and, as a general rule, the head and its 
appurtenances should be exempted from penal violence. 

In this place I may very properly allude to another mode of 
assailing the ears of children, quite as undignified in itself and quite 
as unprofitable in its results as pulling them, — and until they are 
hardened to it by familiarity, probably more painful. I refer, I 
need not say, to scolding. This is a punishment altogether too 
common. There is a physiological law, that the exercise of any 
organ will give it greater strength and generally greater celerity. 
From this fact, and the additional one, that the more a child is 
scolded the harder his heart becomes, so that here, as in the Rule 
of Three " more requires more,"— it follows that those who once 
begin to scold, are fortunate if they stop short of high attain- 
ments in the art. 

There is no enterprise in which the investment yields so small a 
profit as in the business of scolding. It is really pitiable to wit- 
ness the teacher given to this practice, making himself and all 
around him unhappy, without the hope of alleviation. The com- 
mand of the tongue is a great virtue in a teacher; and it is" to be 
feared that very many children still suffer in their moral feelings* 
as well as their ears, because so many teachers do not seasonably 
learn the right control of the '• unruly member." 

While upon this subject, I may allude to another very objec- 
tionable mode of address practiced by some teachers toward their 
schools. I refer to a mixture of scolding with a species of low wit 
or cockney blackguardism, that should ever be banished from the 
schoolroom. Such expressions as, " Sit down, John, or I'll shiver 
your /^op-^imZ>ers,"— "Attend to your studies, or some of you will 
be a head shorter,''—'' Keep quiet, or you'll hear thunder,"— and 
the like. To these I might add those empty and debasing threats 
which are too often and too thoughtlessly uttered ; as, " I'll skin you 
alive," or "I'll shake you to pieces," or " I'll use you up "—with 



* A blacksmith, it is said, who had been accustomed to scold his family, quite 
too freely, was one day attempting to harden a piece of steel ; but failing after two 
or three attempts, his little son who had been an observer of this as well as other 
operations of his father, is said to have exclaimed, "ScoZcZ it, father, scold it; if that 
won't harden it, nothing else will." 



SCHOOL GOVERNMENT. 151 

others of the same character. I perhaps ought to beg pardon for 
placing these vulgarisms before the general reader ; but they are 
so frequently employed m our schools, in some of our schools of 
good repute too, that I thought it to be my duty to quote them 
(for they are all literal quotations), in order if possible to aid those 
who have fallen into such a low habit to see themselves as others 
see them. 

It is so very easy for a teacher to raise a laugh among his 
pupils, that he is in danger of being seduced into the use of coarse 
and quaint expressions by the supposition that they are witty. 
But the mirth of schoolboys is not a more reliable criterion of wit 
in the modern teacher than it was in the case of the schoolmaster 
described by Goldsmith ; and possibly the exercise of a little dis- 
cernment on his part would convince him that children sometimes 
laugh, as they did of old, because they think it prudent to do so. 

" A man severe he was and stern to view, 
I knew him well, and every truant knew; 
Well had the boding tremblers learned to trace 
The day's disasters in his morning face; 
Full well they laughed, with counterfeited glee, 
At all his jokes, for many a joke had he!" 

It is unquestionably true that there are schools and many 
such, now of high standing, the language of whose teachers, 
could it be noted down and printed for the parents, would per- 
fectly astonish them, and such is the force of habit, it would very 
likely astynish the teachers themselves. Let all who mean to 
respect themselves, or who desire to be long respected by others, 
most carefully avoid the first approach to the use of such kind of 
language. Its influence in school is " only evil, and that continu- 
ally." 

2. Those punishments that from their nature imply in the 
inHictor a love of prolonged torture.— These are quite numerous, 
and are resorted to often for the purpose of avoiding what is 
usually deemed severer punishment. Some of them also have 
very serious physiological objections. As an instance, I may 
mention the holding of a weight at arm's length until the 



152 PAGE'S THEORY AND PRACTICE. 

muscles of the arm become painful from over-exertion and fatigue. 
Sometimes the Bible, being the largest book at hand, is chosen 
as the weight ; and thus that book, which should have no asso- 
ciations connected with it in the minds of the young but those of 
reverence and love, is made the instrument of torture— the 
minister of cruelty. 

Imagine that you see— what I have seen — an offending boy 
called to the teacher's desk, and, after words of reproach, sen- 
tenced to hold the large Bible at arm's length for a specified 
time, or until the teacher is willing to release him. At first it is 
raised with a smile of triumph, almost a smile of contempt. Soon 
the muscles thus exerted at disadvantage begin to be weary and 
to relax. " Hold it up ! " exclaims the vigilant teacher ; and it is 
again brought to its position. Sooner than before the muscles 
are fatigued, and they almost refuse to obey the mandate of the 
will, which itself is half willing to rebel against authority so 
unreasonable. -'Up with it!"— again brings it to its place, or 
perhaps a stroke of the rattan repeats the command with more 
urgency. At this, moment every nerve sympathizes, and the 
muscles are urged on to their greatest effort. The limb is in 
agony, — and what agony can surpass that of an overstrained 
muscle? — and the whole system reels and writhes with suffering. 
Now look into tliet child's face, and tell me, what is the moral 
effect of this sort of punishment? Unless he is one of the most 
amiable of the sons of Adam, he inwardly curses the cruelty that 
he thinks is delighted with pangs like these, protracted yet intol- 
erable. He almost curses the blessed book which was given to 
warm his soul into life and immortality. He cries with pain, but 
not with penitence. He may submit, indeed, and he may abstain 
from similar offenses in time to come; but it is the submission of 
self-preservation, and the abstinence of an eye-servant, — while 
the stain that has thus been inwrought in his moral sensibilities, 
may long remain unexpunged. Such a punishment I unhesitat- 
ingly pronounce to be improper, whatever may be the circum- 
stances. 

Akin to this are those other contrivances to give prolonged 



SCHOOL GOVERNMENT. 153 

pain, which in different parts of the country have taken a variety 
of forms, and as great a variety of names. One of these has 
been termed ^^ holding a nail into the floor.'' It consists in 
requiring the pupil to bend forward,— and, placing the end of a 
single finger upon the head of a nail, to remain in that position 
till the whole system is agonized. Another has by some of its 
inflictors been termed ''sitting on nothing." The pupil is 
required to place his back against a wall of the room, and his 
feet perhaps a foot from its base, and then to slide his body down 
till the knees ai*e bent at right angles, and his person is in a sit- 
ting posture without a seat ! The muscles, acting over the knee 
at the greatest disadvantage, are now made to support the body 
in that position during the pleasure of the teacher. I have seen 
another mode of punishment practiced, and as I have heard no 
name for it, I shall give it the cognomen of "sitting on worse 
than nothing." The boy in this case was required to sit upon the 
floor, and then, placing the feet upon a bench or chair, to sup- 
port the body in an erect position by reversed action of the 
muscles ! 

But I gladly turn away from a description of the punishments 
I have witnessed in the common schools of New England within 
a quarter of a century, exhibiting as they do so many character- 
istics of the dark ages. Some of these I have witnessed quite 
recently; and to what extent any or all of them are now in use, 
I am unable to say. I only desire to say, that they are all 
improper,— debasing to the morals of the pupils, and degrading 
to the profession of the teacher ; and the sooner such punish- 
ments are entirely banished from our schoolrooms, the sooner 
will the profession of the teacher rise to its proper level. 

3. Ridicule.— 'T\\m is a weapon that should not be wielded as a 
school punishment. It often cuts deeper than he who uses it im- 
agines; and it usually gives most pain where it is least merited. 
Some physical defect, or some mental incapacity or eccentricity, 
is most frequently made the subject of it; and yet nothing can 
be more unfeeling or more unjust than its use in such cases. If 
the designed failings of the indolent, or the premeditated mischief 



154 PAGE'S THEORY AND PRACTICE. 

of the vicious, could be subjected to its influence, its use would be 
more allowable,— but even then it would be questionable. But 
the indolent and the vicious are usually unaffected by ridicule. 
They sin upon calculation, and not without counting the cost; 
and they are therefore very willing to risk their reputation, where 
they have so httle to lose. It is the modest, the conscientious, 
the Av ell-meaning child, that is most affected by ridicule; yet it is 
such a one that, for various reasons, is oftenest made the subject 
of it, though of all others, his feelings should be most tenderly 
spared. 

A strong objection to the use of ridicule, is the feeling whicli it 
induces between the teacher and pupil. The teacher, conscious 
that he has injured the feelings of the child, will find it hard to 
love him afterwards; for we seldom love those whom we have 
injured. The child, on the other hand, loses confidence in his 
teacher; he feels that his sensibilities have been outraged before 
his companions, and that the teacher, who should be his best 
friend in the school, has invited the heartless laugh of his fellow- 
pupils against him. With a want of love on the one hand, and of 
confidence on the other, what further usefulness can reasonably 
be expected ? 

But the strongest objection of all to the use of ridicule is the 
fact that it calls forth the worst of feelings in the school. Those 
who participate in the laugh thus excited, are under the influ- 
ence of no very amiable motives. And when this is carried so 
far as to invite, by direct words, some expression from the 
schooknates, by pointing the finger of shame, and perhaps accom- 
panying the act by a hiss of scorn, the most deplorable spirit of 
self-righteousness is cultivated. 

Little Mary one day was detected in a wrong act by her 
teacher. "Mary, come here," said the teacher, sternly. Little 
thinking she had been seen, she obeyed promptly, and stood by 
the chair of her teacher, who, without giving Mary time to reflect, 
and thus allow the conscience opportunity to gain the mastery, 
immediately asked, "What naughty thing did I see you do just 
now?" " Nothing," said Mary, partly disposed to justify herself, 



SCHOOL GOVERNMENT. 155 

and partly doubting whether indeed the teacher had seen her do 
anything wrong. " Oh, Mary, Mary, who wonld think you would 
tell me a lie! Did you ever hear of Ananias and Sapphira?" Here 
a lecture followed on the sin and danger of lying, and particularly 
the danger of sudden death by the vengeance of God. Mar^^ began 
to tremble, and then to weep, probably from terror. Now came 
the second part. "I should think jow would be ashamed to be 
known to lie. All the children now know that you have lied. 
I should think they would feel ashamed of such a naughty little 
girl in the school. I should not wonder," she continued, "if all the 
little boys and girls should point their fingers at you and hiss." 
In an instant all the children who were not too old to be disgusted 
with the management and tone of the teacher, pointed their 
fingers, and uttered a long succession of hisses, while their faces 
beamed with all the complacency of self-righteousness, triumph- 
ing over the fall of a companion, who perhaps was after all as 
good, and as truthful a child as any of them. The poor child at 
first turned her back upon them; but soon, feeling that her repu- 
tation was gone, she turned, as woman ever will when her self- 
respect is blighted, with a look of indifference, almost a, look of 
defiance. Fear was first swallowed up in shame, and shame gave 
place to reckless audacity. The whole scene was rendered still 
more ruinous to the child, from the fact that it took place in the 
presence of visitors. 

When will our teachers learn the human heart well enough to 
be able to distinguish between a work of devastation and of true 
culture; betw^een a process of blighting the sensibilities, searing 
the conscience, freezing up the fountains of sympathy, and of 
mutual love and confidence, — and a course of training which 
warms the conscience into activity, inculcates the reverence and 
love of God, instead of a slavish fear of His power, and instills into 
the soul a desire to do right, rather than to do that which will 
avoid the reproach of an unfeeling multitude, more wicked than 
those they censure? Goldsmith has shown that woman may 
''stoop to conquer;" but the above narrative shows how she 
may stoop, not to conquer, but to lay waste the youthful heart. 



156 PAGE'S THEORY AND PRACTICE. 

These punishments, and such as these, which I have classed 
under the list of improper punishments, should all be carefully 
considered by the teacher. They should be considered before he 
enters his school. It would be well always for him to determine 
beforehand what punishments he will not use. It may save him 
many a serious mistake. I have written what I have under this 
head, in order to put teachers upon thought believing that men 
seldom earnestly and honestly inquire, without arriving at the 
truth in the end. 

II. Proper punishments. — Every teacher's mind should, if 
possible, be settled, as to what punishments are proper, so that 
when they are inflicted, it can be done in good faith, and with an 
honest conviction of the performance of duty. Among the proper 
punishments, I may mention, 

1. Kind reproof.— This will probably be conceded by all. I 
say kind reproof, because no other reproof can be useful. I would 
distinguish it from reproach. Reproof, judiciously administered, 
is one of the most effectual punishments that can be used. As a 
general rule, this is best administered privately. The child's 
spirit of obstinacy is very likely to exhibit itself in the presence of 
his fellows; but in private, the conscience is free to act, and the 
child very readily submits. It is always perfectly safe to reprove 
privately; that is, not in the presence of the school. The child 
has no motive to misrepresent the teacher; and if the teacher so 
far spares the reputation of the pupil, as to take him by himself, 
this very circumstance will often give the teacher access to his 
better feelings. 

2. Loss of privileges.— By abuse of privileges we forfeit them. 
This is a law of Providence. It is unquestionably proper that 
this should be a law of our schools. All those offenses, therefore, 
against propriety in the exercise of any privilege, may be 
attended with a temporary or permanent deprivation of such 
privilege. A pupil who is boisterous at the recess, disturbing the 
quiet of the school or impeding the enjoyment of his playfellows, 
may be deprived of the recess. A child, who disfigures his seat 
with his knife, may be deprived of his knife; and so for any other 



SCHOOL GOVERNMENT. 157 

similar offense. Some consider it proper to extend this punish- 
ment to other classes of offenses, as, for example, whispering or 
idleness. While I would not deny the right or the propriety of do- 
ing so, I should think it moi-e expedient not thus to extend it. It 
is well, as far as it can be done, so to punish the child, that he shall 
see that his conduct naturally leads to its punishment as a con- 
sequence. And it is moreover very probable that in most schools 
there will be demand enough for this punishment, in its natural 
application, without extending it to other cases. 

3. Restraint, or confinement.— When liberty is abused, a 
scholar may be put under restraint. When duty is violated, and 
the rights of others are wantonly disregarded, confinement will 
afford time for reflection, and at the same time relieve others 
from the annoyance and detriment of evil example. Such 
restraint is often a wholesome discipline ; and confinement, if it be 
not too far protracted, is always safe. It should be remarked, 
however, that confinement in a dark apartment should never be 
resorted to by any teacher. There are insuperable objections 
to it, growing out of the fears which many children early enter- 
tain of being alone in the dark, as also the fact that light as well 
as air is necessary to the vigorous action of the nervous system 
during the waking hours, especially in the daytime. It is well 
known that a child shut up in a dark room even in the warmth 
of summer, speedily undergoes a depression of temperature; and 
if the confinement is unduly protracted, cold chills come over the 
system. For these reasons, and others, if confinement is ever 
used as a punishment, it should be in a room properly lighted 
and heated. Our prisoners enjoy, as far as may be, both of 
these favors. 

4. Humiliation. — This should be resorted to with great cau- 
tion. When a fault has been openly committed, and attended 
with circumstances of peculiar obstinacy, it may sometimes very 
properly be required of the offender that he should confess the 
fault in a manner as public as its commission. This may be due 
to the school. Sometimes when an offensive act is very strongly 
marked, a confession and a request for the forgiveness of the 



158 PAGE'S THEORY AND PRACTICE. 

teacher or the individual injured may be made a condition of 
restoration to favor. This is usually considered a very proper 
punishment. I would however suggest, that it be used with great 
care, and never unless the circumstances imperatively demand it. 
It may be the means of cultivating the grossest hypocrisy, or of 
inducing open rebellion ; and it sometimes gives the other pupils 
an advantage over the culprit, which may do him personally 
much harm. The teacher should be convinced that this is the 
best thing he can do, before he resorts to it. 

5. Actual chastisement with the rod of correction.— 1 have no 
hesitation (though others have) in placing this among the class 
of proper punishments. As this involves a great question on the 
subject of school government, and one that is debated with great 
zeal and warmth in almost every educational meeting that is 
held, I shall feel justified in giving a little more space to the 
consideration of it. 

SECTION IV.— CORPORAL PUNISHMENT. 

I am aware that when I enter this field 1 am treading on 
ground every inch of which has been disputed. I come to the task 
of writing on this subject, however, 1 think, without prejudice or 
asperity. Having nothing to conceal, I shall express my own 
views honestly and frankly,— views which I entertain aftei- dili- 
gently seeking the truth for some twenty' years, during which 
time I have listened to a great deal of discussion, and have read 
carefully and candidly whatever has been written by others. Nor 
do I expect to give universal satisfaction. There are strongmen, 
and I believe honest men, who run to the opposite extremes in 
their doctrine and practice, and who defend the one course or the 
other as if the existence of the world depended upon the issue. 
There are those, who not only claim the right to chastise, but 
who insist that whipping should be the iirst resort of the teacher 
in establishing his authoi'ity; and to show that this is not a dor- 
mant article of their faith, they daily and almost hourly demon- 
strate their efiiciency in the use of the rod, so that their pupils 
may be living witnesses that they act in accordance with their 



SCHOOL GOVEIiXMLWT. 159 

creed. Again, there are others who as earnestly deny the right 
of the teacher to resort to the rod at all, and who urge with all 
their power the efficacy of moral suasion to subdue and control 
the vicious and the stubborn in our schools ; and who are ready 
to assert unequivocally that no man is fit to be employed to 
teach the young, who has not the ability to govern all the vari- 
ous dispositions he may meet in any school, without the use of 
corporal punishment. 

I have no disposition to question the sincerity and honesty of 
each of these classes, knowing as I do, that different men see with 
different eyes, even when the circumstances are the same; much 
more when their circumstances are widely diverse. I have no bit- 
terness of language to apply to those who go to the extreme of 
severity; nor any sneer to bestow upon the name of "moral 
suasionist." But while 1 accord to other men the right of express- 
ing their own opinions, I claim the same privilege for myself ,— yet 
wdthout wishing to obtrude my opinions upon other men any 
further than they will bear the test of reason and experience. 

It is agreed on all hands that the teacher must establish 
authority in some way, before he can pursue successfully the 
objects of his school. I have described the qualifications which 
the teacher should possess in order to govern well, and I have also 
given some of the means of securing good order without a resort 
to severity. Probably in a large majority of our schools, the 
teacher with these qualifications and the employment of these 
means, could succeed in establishing and maintaining good order 
without any such resort. This should in my opinion always be 
done, if possible,— and no one will rejoice more than myself to 
see the day, should that day ever come, when teachers shall be so 
much improved as to be able to do this universally. But in 
writing on this subject, it is the dictate of common sense to take 
human nature as it is, and human teachers as they are, and as 
many of them must be, for some time to come,— and adapt our 
directions to the circumstances. Human nature, as it is exhib- 
ited in our children, is far from being perfect; and I am sorry to 
say that the parents of our children often exhibit it in a still less 



160 PAGE'S THEORY AND PEACTICE. 

flattering light. Perhaps no language of mine can so well repre- 
sent the eoncurrenee of circumstances making corporal punish- 
ment necessary in our schools as it has been done by the Hon. 
Horace Mann in his lecture on " School Punishments." 

"The first point," says he, "which I shall consider, is, w^hether 
corporal punishment is ever necessary in our schools. As pre- 
liminary to a decision of this question, let us take a brief sur- 
vey of facts. We have in this Commonwealth [Massachusetts], 
above one hundred and ninety-two thousand children between 
the ages of four and sixteen years. All these children are not 
only legally entitled to attend our public schools, but it is our 
great desire to increase that attendance, and he who increases it 
is regarded a reformer. All that portion of these children who 
attend school, enter it from that vast variety of homes 
which exist in the State. From different households, where the 
widest diversity of parental and domestic influences prevails, 
the children enter the schoolroom, where there must be compara- 
tive uniformity. At home some of these children have been 
indulged in every wish, flattered and smiled upon for the energies 
of their low propensities, and even their freaks and whims enacted 
into household laws. Some have been so rigorously debarred from 
every innocent amusement and indulgence, that they have opened 
for themselves away to gratification, through artifice and treach- 
ery and falsehood. Others, from vicious parental example, and 
the corrupting influences of vile associates, have been trained to 
bad habits and contaminated with vicious principles, ever since 
they were born;— some being taught that honor consists in whip- 
ping a boy larger than themselves ; others that the chief end of 
man is to own a box that cannot be opened, and to get money 
enough to fill it; and others again have been taught, upon their 
father's knees, to shape their young lips to the utterance of oaths 
and blasphemy. Now all these dispositions, which do not con- 
flict with right more than they do with each other, as soon as 
they cross the threshold of the schoolroom, from the different 
worlds, as it were, of homes, must be made to obey the same 
general regulations, to pursue the same studies, and to aim at 



SCHOOL GOVERNMENT. 161 

the same results. In addition to these artificial varieties, there 
are natural differences of temperament and disposition. 

"Again, there are about three thousand public schools in the 
State, in which are employed, in the course of the year, about five 
thousand different persons, as teachers, including both males and 
females. Excepting a very few cases, these five thousand persons 
have had no special preparation or training for their employment, 
and many of them are young and without experience. These five 
thousand teachers, then, so many of whom are unprepared, are 
to be placed in authority over the one hundred and ninety-tw^o 
thousand children, so many of whom have been perverted. With- 
out passing through any transition state for improvement, these 
parties meet each other in the schoolroom, where mutiny and 
insubordination aud disobedience are to be repressed, order 
maintained, knowledge acquired. He, therefore, who denies the 
necessity of resorting to punishment, in our schools,— and to cor- 
poral punishment, too,— virtually affirms two things:— first, that 
this great number of children, scooped up from all places, taken 
at all ages and in all conditions, can be deterred from the wrong 
and attached to the right without punishment; and secondly, he 
asserts that the five thousand persons whom the towns and dis- 
tricts employ to keep their respective schools, are now, and in the 
present condition of things, able to accomplish so glorious a 
work. Neither of these propositions am I at present prepared to 
admit. If there are extraordinary individuals — and we know 
there are such — so singularly gifted with talent and resources, 
and with the divine quality of love, that they can win the affec- 
tion, and, by controlling the heart, can control the conduct of 
children, who, for years, have been addicted to lie, to cheat, to 
swear, to steal, to fight, still I do not believe there are now five 
thousand such individuals in the State, whose heavenly services 
can be obtained for this transforming work. And it is useless, or 
worse than useless to say, that such or such a thing can be done, 
and done immediately, without pointing out the agents by whom 
it can be done. One who affirms thai: a thing can be done, with- 
out any reference to the persons who can do it, must be thinking 
T. p.— 11 



162 PAGE'S THEORY AND PRACTICE. 

of miracles. If the position were, that children may be so edu- 
cated from their birth, and teachers maj^ be so trained for their 
calling, as to supersede the necessity of corporal punishment, 
except in cases decidedly monstrous, then I should have no doubt 
of its truth; but such a position must have reference to some 
future period, which we should strive to hasten, but ought not to 
anticipate." 

Aside from the causes demanding punishment, so ably por- 
trayed in the passage just quoted, there is still another, growing 
out of divisions and quarrels in the district. It is by no means 
uncommon, in our districts, owing to some local matter, or to 
some disunion in politics or religion, for the people to be arrayed, 
the one part against the other. 

These neighborhood antagonisms sometimes find their way 
into the school. If a teacher is employed against whom one of 
the parties has objections, immediately his failure is predicted, 
and these dark prophecies are uttered by parents, it may be in 
the presence of their children. The inhabitants of the upper 
road are jealous of the dwellers on the lower road; the hill por- 
tion of the district is aggrieved by the influence of the valley 
portion; the "east end" complains of the selfishness of the 
" west end," and so of the north and south. Whenever a school- 
house is to be built, these different interests are aroused, and a 
protracted and baleful quarrel is the result. One party *' carries 
the day" by the force of numbers, but the prosperity of the 
school is impaired for years. At every district meeting there will 
be the same strife for the mastery. If one division gains the 
power, the other bends its energies to cripple the school, and to 
annoy the teacher, who may be employed by the dominant party, 
however excellent or deserving he may be. "We will see," say 
those who find themselves in the minority, "we will see whether 
this man can keep our school as well as it was done last year by 
our master." This is uttered in presence of their children — per- 
haps their half-grown sons, who will be very ready to meet their 
new teacher with prejudice and to act out the misgivings of their 
parents as to his success. When the teacher first enters the 



SCHOOL GOVERNMENT. 163 

school, he is met by opposition, even before he has time to make 
an impression for good; opposition, which he can scarcely hope 
to surmount as long as it is thus encouraged at home. Now 
what shall he do ? Shall he yield the point, abandon the idea of 
authority, and endeavor to live along from day to day, in the 
hope of a more comfortable state of things by-and-by ? He may 
be sure that matters will daily grow worse. Shall he give up in 
despair, and leave the school to some successor? This will only 
strengthen the opposition and make it more violent when the 
successor shall be appointed. It is but putting the diflBculty one 
step farther off. Besides, if the teacher does thus give up, and 
leave the school, he loses his own reputation as a man of energy, 
and, in the eyes of the world, who perhaps may not know — or 
care to know — all the circumstances, he is held ever after as 
incompetent for the office. 

Now it would be very gratifying if the teacher, under any or 
all of these difficulties, could possess the moral power to quell 
them all by a look or by the exercise of his ingenuity in interest- 
ing his pupils in their studies. Undoubtedly there are some men 
who could do it, and do it most triumphantly, so as to make 
their most zealous enemies in a few days their warmest friends. 
But there are not many who can work thus at disadvantage. 
What then shall be done? Shall the school be injured by being 
disbanded, and the teacher be stigmatized for a failure, when he 
has been employed in good faith? I say no. He has the right to 
estabhsh authority by corporal infliction; and thus to save the 
school and also save himself. And more than this ; —if there is 
reasonable ground to believe that by such infliction he can estab- 
lish order, and thus make himself useful, and save the time and the 
character of the school, he not only has the right, but he is bound 
by duty to use it. The lovers of order in the district have a right 
to expect him to use it, unless by express stipulation beforehand 
they have exempted him from it. I repeat, then, that it is the 
teacher's duty to establish authority; "peaceably, indeed, if he 
may,— forcibly if he must." 

I ought in fairness here to add, as I have before hinted, that 



164 PAGE'S THEORY AND PRACTICE. 

not unfrequently the necessity for corporal infliction exists in the 
teacher himself. This is often proved by a transfer of teachers. 
One man takes a school, and can only survive his term by the 
exercise of whipping. He is followed by another who secures 
good order and the love of the school without any resort to the 
rod. The first declared that whipping was necessary in his case 
to secure good order, and truly; but the necessity resided in him 
and not in the school. So it often does,— and while teachers are 
zealously defending the rod, they should also feel the necessity of 
improving themselves as the most effectual way to obviate its 
frequent use. 

When authority is once established in a school, it is compara- 
tively easy to maintain it. There will of course be less necessity 
for resorting to the rod after the teacher has obtained the ascend- 
ency, unless it be in the event of taking some new pupil into the 
school who is disposed to be refractory. I have but little respect 
for the teacher who is daily obliged to fortify his authority by 
corporal infliction. Something must be fundamentally wrong in 
the teacher whose machinery of government, when once well in 
motion, needs to be so often forcibly wound up. 

From what has already been said, it will be seen that I do not 
belong to the number who aflirm that the rod of correction 
should never be used in schools. Nor am I prepared to advise any 
teacher to publish beforehand that he will not punish with the rod. 
It would always be wiser for the teacher to say nothing about it. 
Very little good ever comes of threatening the use of it. Threat- 
ening of any sort avails but little. A teacher may enter a school 
with the determination to govern it if possible without force. 
Indeed I should advise one always to make this determination in 
his own mind. But whenever such a determination is published, 
the probability of success is very much diminished. 

The true way and the safe way, in my opinion, is to rely 
mainly on moral means for the government of the school, — to 
use the rod without much threatening, if driven to it by the force 
of circumstances, and as soon as authority is established, to allow 
it again to slumber with the tacit understanding that it can be 



SCHOOL GOVERNMENT. 165 

again awakened from its repose if found necessary. The knowl- 
edge in the school that there is an arm of power, may prevent 
any necessity of an appeal to it ; and such a knowledge can do 
no possible harm in itself. But if the teacher has once pledged him- 
self to the school that he will never use the rod, the necessity may 
soon come for him to abandon his position or lose his influence 
over the pupils. 

As much has been said against the use of the rod in any 
case in school government, it may be proper to consider briefly 
some of the substitutes for it, which have been suggested by its 
opposers. 

As a substitute for the use of the rod some have urged the ex- 
pulsion of such scholars as are disobedient. To this it may be 
replied that it is not quite certain, under existing laws, whether 
the teacher has the right to expel a scholar from the common 
schools; and some deny even the right of the school officers to 
do it. Whether the right exists or not, it is very questionable 
whether it is ever expedient to expel a scholar for vicious conduct; 
and especially in cases where there is physical power to control 
him. The vicious and ignorant scholar is the \ery one who most 
needs the reforming influence of a good education. Sent away 
from the fountain of knowledge and virtue at this— the very time 
of need— and what may we expect for him but utter ruin? Such 
a pupil most of all needs the restraint and the instruction of a 
teacher who is capable of exercising the one and affording the 
other. 

But suppose he is dismissed, is there any reason to hope that 
this step will improve the culprit himself, or better the condition 
of the school? Will he not go on to estabUsh himself in vice, 
unrestrained by any good influence, and at last become a suitable 
subject for the severity of the laws, an inmate of our prisons, and 
perhaps a miserable expiator of his own crimes upon the gallows? 
How many youth — and youth worth saving, too — have been thus 
cast out perversely to procure their own ruin, at the very time 
when they might have been saved by sufficient energy and benev- 
olence, no mortal tongue can tell ! Nor is the school itself usually 



166 PAGE'S THEORY AND PRACTICE. 

benefited by this measure. "For all purposes of evil," Mr. Mann 
justly remarks, ''he continues in the midst of the very children 
from among whom he was cast out; and when he associates with 
them out of school, there is no one present to abate or neutralize 
his vicious influences. If the expelled pupil be driven from the 
district where he belongs into another, in order to prevent his 
contamination at home, what better can be expected of the place 
to which he is sent, than a reciprocation of the deed, by their 
sending one of their outcasts to supply his place ; and thus open- 
ing a commerce of evil upon free-trade principles. Nothing is 
gained while the evil purpose remains in the heart. Keformation 
is the great desideratum; and can any lover of this country 
hesitate between the alternative of forcible subjugation and 
victorious contumacy?" 

From all that has been said, it will be seen that I do not 
hesitate to teach that corporal infliction is one of the justifiahle 
means of establishing authority in the schoolroom. To this con- 
clusion I have come, after a careful consideration of the subject, 
modified by the varied experience of nearly twenty years, and by 
a somewhat attentive observation of the workings of all the 
plans which have been devised to avoid its use or to supply its 
place. And although I do not understand the Scriptures, and 
particularly the writings of Solomon, to recommend a too fre- 
quent and ill-considered use of it, I do not find anything in the 
letter or spirit of Christianity inconsistent with its proper appli- 
cation. It is the abuse, and not the use of the rod, against 
wiiich our better feeling, as well as the spirit of Christianity, 
revolts. It is the abuse of the rod, or rather the abuse of chil- 
dren under the infliction of the rod, that first called forth the 
discussion referred to, and awakened the general opposition to 
its use. I am free to admit there has been an egregious abuse in 
this matter, and that to this day it is unabated in many of our 
schools. I admit, too, that abuse very naturally accompanies 
the use of the rod, and that very great caution is necessary in 
those who resort to it, lest they pervert it. I feel called upon 
therefore before leaving this subject to throw out for the consid- 



SCHOOL GOVERNMENT. 167 

eration of the young teacher particularly, a few hints to regulate 
the infliction of chastisement, under the head of 



SECTION v.— LIMITATIONS AND SUGGESTIONS. 

1. The teacher should be thoroughly convinced that the rod 
is the best thing for the specific case, before he determines to use 
it. Nor should he hastily or capriciously come to this conviction. 
He should carefully and patiently try other means first. He 
should study the disposition of the offender and learn the tend- 
encies of his mind; and only after careful deliberation, should 
he suffer himself to decide to use this mode of punishment. In 
order that the punishment should be salutary, the scholar should 
plainly see that the teacher resorts to it from deep principle, from 
the full belief that under all the circumstances it is the best thing 
that can be done. 

2. The teacher should never be under the excitement of angry 
passion when inflicting the punishment.— This is of the utmost 
importance. Most of the abuses before spoken of, grow out of a 
violation of this fundamental rule. A teacher should never strike 
for punishment till he is perfectly self-possessed, and entirely free 
from the bitterness which perhaps tinctured his mind when he 
discovered the offense. It was a wise remark of a young Shaker 
teacher, that ''no teacher should strike a child till he could hold 
his arm.'' So long as the child discovers that the teacher is under 
the influence of passion, and that his lip trembles with pent-up 
rage, and his blood flows into his face as if driven by inward 
fires of wrath, he looks upon him, not as his friend seeking his 
welfare, but as his enemy indulging in persecution. This will 
call forth the evil passions of the child, and while he bears the 
pain, he feels no real penitence; and very Hkely in the midst of 
his suffering he resolves to go and do the same again, out of 
mere spite. 

It is moreover of great consequence in the infliction of a pun- 
ishment, that the teacher should be fully sustained by the public 
opinion of the school. He can never expect this when he loses his 



168 PAGE'S THEORY AND PRACTICE. 

self-control. If the pupils see that he is angry, they almost 
instinctively sympathize with the weaker party, and they asso- 
ciate the idea of injustice with the action of the stronger. A pun- 
ishment can scarcely be of any good tendency, inflicted under 
such circumstances. 

3. Corporal punishment, as a general rule, should be inflicted 
in presence of the school. — I have before advised that reproof 
should be given in private, and assigned reasons for it, which 
were perhaps satisfactory to the reader. But in case of cor- 
poral punishment, the offense is of a more public and probably 
of a more serious nature. If inflicted in private, it will still be 
known to the school, and therefore the reputation of the scholar 
is not saved. If inflicted in the proper spirit by the teacher and 
for proper cause, it always produces a salutary effect upon the 
school. 

But a still stronger reason for making the infliction public 
is, that it puts it beyond the power of the pupil to misrep- 
resent the teacher, as he is strongly tempted to do if he is alone. 
He may misstate the degree of severity, and misrepresent the 
manner of the teacher; and, without witnesses, the teacher is 
at the mercy of his reports. Sometimes he may ridicule the pun- 
ishment to his comrades, and lead them to believe that a private 
infliction is but a small matter; again, he may exaggerate it to 
his parents, and charge the teacher most unjustly with unprin- 
cipled cruelty. Under these circumstances, I am of the opinion 
that the safest and most effectual way, is to do this work in the 
presence of the school. An honest teacher need not fear the light 
of day; and if he has the right spirit, he need not fear the effect 
upon his other pupils. It is only the violent, angrj^ punishment 
that needs to be concealed from the general eye, and that we 
have condemned as improper at any rate. 

4. Punishment may sometimes be delayed; and always 
delayed till all anger has subsided in the teacher.— It is often 
best for all concerned to defer an infliction for a day or more. 
This gives the teacher an opportunity in his cooler moments to 
determine more justly the degree of severity to be used. It will 



SCHOOL GOVERNMENT. 169 

also give the culprit time to reflect upon the nature of his offense 
and the degree of punishment he deserves. I may saj that it is 
generally wise for the teacher after promising a punishment to 
take some time to consider what it shall he, whether a corporal 
Infliction or some milder treatment. If after due and careful 
reflection he comes conscientiously to the conclusion, that bodily 
pain is the best thing, — while he will be better prepared to inflict, 
the pupil by similar reflection will be better prepared to receive it 
and profit by it. 

5. A proper instrument should be used and a proper mode of 
infliction adopted.— No heavy and hurtful weapon should be 
employed. A light rule for the hand, or a rod for the back or 
lower extremities, may be preferred. Great care should be exer- 
cised to avoid injuring any of the joints in the infliction; and on 
no account should a blow be given upon the head. 

6. If possible, the punishment should be made effectual. — A 
punishment that does not produce thorough submission and 
penitence in the subject of it, can hardly be said to answer its 
main design. To be sure, in cases of general insubordination in 
the school, I have said that punishment may be applied to one, 
having in view the deterring of others from similar offenses. But 
such exemplary punishment belongs to extreme cases while disci- 
plinary punishment, which has mainly for its object the reforma- 
tion of the individual upon whom it is inflicted, should be most 
relied on. Taking either view of the case, it should if possible 
answer its design, or it would be better not to attempt it. The 
teacher's judgment, therefore, should be very carefully exercised 
in the matter, and all his knowledge of human nature should 
be called into requisition. If after careful and conscientious 
deliberation he comes to the conclusion that the infliction of 
pain is the best thing, and to the belief that he can so inflict 
it as to show himself to the school and to the child, in this 
act as in all others, a true and kind friend to the child,— then 
he is justifled in making the attempt; and having consider- 
ately undertaken the case, it should be so thorough as not soon 
to need repetition. 



170 PAGE'S THEORY AND PRACTICE. 

I would here take the opportunity to censure the practice of 
those teachers who punish every little departure from duty with 
some trifling- appliance of the rod, which the scholar forgets 
almost as soon as the smarting ceases. Some instructors carry 
about with them a rattan or stick, in order to have it ready for 
appliance as soon as they see any departure from their com- 
mands. The consequence is, they soon come to a frequent and 
inconsiderate use of it, and the pupils by habit become familiar 
with it, and of course cease to respect their teacher or to dread 
his punishments. I have seen so much of this, that whenever I 
see a teacher thus ''armed and equipped,'' I infer at once that his 
school is a disorderly one, an inference almost invariably con- 
firmed by a few minutes' observation. My earnest advice to all 
young teachers would be, next to the habit of scolding inces- 
santly, avoid the habit of resorting to the rod on every slight 
occasion. When that instrument is not demanded for some 
special exigency, some great occasion and some high purpose, 
allow it to slumber in a private corner of 3^our desk, not again to 
be called into activity till some moral convulsion shall disturb its 
quiet repose. 

I have a single caution to give in regard to the discussion of 
this subject, which in all our educational gatherings occupies so 
much time and talent. It is this: — Do not adopt a general 
principle from too few inductions. There is an old proverb that 
declares, "one swallow does not make a summer." Young teach- 
ers are very prone to rely on the experience of a single term. If 
they have kept one term without corporal punishment, they are 
very likely to instruct their seniors with their experience ; and if 
they have happened to be so situated as to be compelled to save 
themselves by the rod, why then, too, their experience forever set- 
tles the question. It requires the experience of more than one, or 
two, or three schools, to enable a man to speak dogmatically on 
this subject; and I always smile when I hear men, and sometimes 
very young men, who have never kept school in their lives, per- 
haps, or at most but a single term, speaking as with the voice of 
authority. Experience is indeed one of our safest guides in this 



SCHOOL GOVERNMENT. 171 

as in every other matter; but they who tell their experience 
should at least wait till they have that which is worthy to be 
told. 

There is another point. It is quite fashionable at the present 
day, whenever this subject is to be discussed, to propose the 
matter in the form of a resolution ; as, "Resolved, that no per- 
son is fit to be employed as a teacher, who cannot govern 
his scholars by holier means than bodily chastisement ; " or, 
''Resolved, that no limit should be set to the teacher's right to 
use the 'rod of correction,' and that they who denounce the 
teachers for resorting to it are unworthy of our confidence in 
matters of education." Now whoever presents the question in 
this form, assumes that he has drawn a line through the very 
core of the truth ; and he undertakes to censure all those who are 
unwilling to square their opinions by the line thus drawn. In 
the discussion a man must take one side or the other of the ques- 
tion as it is proposed, and consequently he may take a false 
position. 

The better way would be to present the whole subject as matter 
of free remark, and thus leave everyone to present his oWn views 
honestly as they lie in his own mind. In this way no one is 
pledged to this or that party, but is left unprejudiced to discover 
and embrace the truth wherever it is found. 

It should morever be remembered, that resolving by the vote 
of a meeting in order to force public opinion, can never effect the 
truth. A few impious. Heaven-daring men in France, at one of 
their revels, once resolved, "there is no God!"— but did this 
blasphemous breath efface the impress of Deity on all this fair 
creation of his power? And when they rose from their vile 
debauch and sought with tottering step to leave the scene of 
madness and to court the dim forgetfulness of sleep,— rolled not 
the shining orbs in heaven's high arch above them as much in 
duty to His will, as when they sang together to usher in crea- 
tion's morning? So it will ever be. Men may declare, and resolve 
as they please; but truth is eternal and unchangeable; and 
they are the wisest men who modestly seek to find her as she 



172 PAGE'S THEORY AND PRACTICE. 

is, and not as their perverted imaginations would presume to 
paint her. 

Yet after all, in the government of schools, there is a more ex- 
cellent way. There are usually easier avenues to the heart, than 
that which is found through the integuments of the body. Happy 
is that teacher who is so skillful as to find them ; and gladly 
would I welcome the day when the number of such skilh'ul and 
devoted teachers should render any further defense of the rod 
superfluous. Although 1 believe that day has not yet arrived, 
still in the meantime, I most earnestly urge all teachers to strive 
to reach the higher motives and the finer feelings of the young, 
and to rely mainly for success, not upon appeals to fear and 
force, but upon the power of conscience and the law of reciprocal 
affection. 

As I have placed the higher motives and the more desirable 
means first in order in these remarks on government, so I would 
always have them first, and perseveringly employed by the 
teacher; and, if by earnestness in his work, by unfeigned love 
for the young, by diligence in the study of their natures, and the 
adaptation of means to ends which true benevolence is sure to 
suggest, he can govern successfully without corporal punish- 
ment—as in a large proportion of cases I believe it can be done— 
none will rejoice more than I at such a desirable result;— and I 
most cordially subscribe to the principle so happily stated by 
another, that in the government of schools, if thorough obedi- 
ence be but secured and order maintained, other things being 
equal, ''the minimum of punishment is the maximum of excel- 
lence." 

School government, like every ofcher phase of school manage- 
ment, finds its purpose in the immediate purpose of the school. 
The immediate purpose of the school is conceded to be instruc- 
tion. It is to promote this purpose that the schoolhouse is built, 
furniture provided, and fuel supplied. It is for this that the 
teacher is employed, the school organized, and the pupils classi- 
fied. The essential condition of success in the accomplishment of 
this purpose is the organic unity of mind between teacher and 



SCHOOL GOVERNMENT. 178 

pupils in the act of instruction. The teacher must think the end 
to be reached in any lesson or series of lessons ; he must think 
out the steps by which the child's mind is to reach that end, and 
he must think out the appropriate means by which the child shall 
be led to take those steps. His work in the recitation is to apply 
the means, and see that the child takes the steps and reaches the 
end. In the use of means, in taking steps, and in apprehend- 
ing the end, the mind of teacher and pupil must be one ; they 
must be thinking together. This is what is meant by the organic 
unity of mind between teacher and pupil in the act of instruction. 
In this we find the fundamental law, the constitution, if you 
please, of the school. It inheres in the very nature of the school 
itself. With this unity broken, instruction must fail. Every 
act of teacher and pupils,— even of trustees and janitor,— must 
be judged in the light of this fundamental law. Whatever 
maintains and promotes the unity accords with the law, and 
therefore is right; whatever breaks the unity violates the law, 
and therefore is wrong. A restoration of the unity satisfies 
the law. 

In its operation there is no place for spite, vindictiveness, or 
vengeance. In many a school it is the teacher, quite as fre- 
quently as the pupils, who severs the bond of unity. It may 
have been done by the careless assignment of a lesson, by his 
own failure to prepare the lesson, or by some cross word or inju- 
dicious act; whatever may have been the cause, he should not 
attempt to proceed until he has done what he can to satisfy the 
violated law; that is, to restore the unity. Until this is done no 
real progress in instruction can be made. If the pupil is at fault, 
the first thing for the teacher to do is to study the case and find 
out the real cause of the trouble. In school government, as in 
the practice of medicine, too much stress cannot be laid upon 
proper diagnosis. Failure here often leads to fatal misapplica- 
tion of remedies. It is only by such careful diagnosis that the 
teacher can be able to determine whether is needed encourage- 
ment, assistance, gentle reproof, sharp correction, or severe pun- 
ishment; whether the punishment should be mental or corporal ; 



174 PAGE'S THEORY AND PRACTICE. 

whether corporal punishment should be remedial or exemplary in 
character, and whether it should be administered privately or in 
public. 

This law of unity comprehends the entire decalogue of school 
management. The teacher who thoroughly understands and fol- 
lows it, will find the mass of details in his work quietly slipping 
into organic relation to the central purpose of the school ; and 
what before may have seemed a veritable chaos, will grow, more 
^.nd more, into a beautiful and harmonious unity. 



CHAPTER X. 

SCHOOL ARRANGEMENTS. 

Every teacher before opening; a school should have some 
general plan in his mind, of what he intends to accomplish. In 
every enterprise there is great advantage to be derived from fore- 
thought,— and perhaps nowhere is the advantage greater than 
in the business of teaching. The day of opening a school is an 
eventful day to the young teacher. A thousand things crowd 
upon him at the same time, and each demands a prompt and 
judicious action on his part. The children to the number of half 
a hundred all turn their inquiring eyes to him for occupation and 
direction. They have come full of interest in the prospects of the 
new school, ready to engage cheerfully in whatever plans the 
teacher may have to propose; and, I was about to say, just as 
ready to arrange and carry into effect their own plans of disorder 
a,nd misrule, if they, unhappily for him and for themselves, find 
he has no system to introduce. 

What a critical— what an eventful moment is this first day of 
the term to all concerned ! The teacher's success and usefulness,- 
nay, his reputation as an efficient instructor,— now "hang upon 
the decision of an hour." An hour, too, may almost foretell 
whether the precious season of childhood and youth now before 
these immortals, is to be a season of profit and healthful culture 
under a judicious hand, or a season of wasted— perhaps worse 
than wasted — existence, under the imbecility or misguidance of 
one who " knows not what he does or what he deals with." 

If angels ever visit our earth and hover unseen around the 
gatherings of mortals to survey their actions and contemplate 
their destiny as affected by human instrumentality, it seems to 
me there can be no spectacle so calculated to awaken their 

(175) 



176 PAGE'S THEORY AND PRACTICE. 

interest and enkindle their sympathy as when they see the young 
gathering together from their scattered homes in some rural dis- 
trict to receive an impress, for weal or woe, from the hand of him 
who has undertaken to guide them. And, supposing them to 
have the power to appreciate to the full extent the consequences 
of human agency, how must they be touched with emotions of 
joy and gratitude, or shudder with those of horror and dread, as 
they witness the alternations of wisdom and foll^^, seriousness 
and indifference, sincerity and duplicity, purity and defilement, 
exhibited by him who has assumed to be at once the director and 
exemplar in the formation of human character, at such an impor- 
tant period. How deplorable is the thought that all the fond hopes 
of the parents, all the worth}^ aspirings of the children, and all 
the thrilling interests of higher beings, are so often to be answered 
by qualifications so scanty, and by a spirit so indifferent in 
the teacher of the young. How sad the thought that up to 
this very moment, so pregnant with consequences to all con- 
cerned, there has been too often so little of preparation for the 
responsibility. 

I fain would impress the young teacher with the importance of 
having a plan for even the first day of the school. It will raise 
him surprisingly in the estimation of the pupils and also of the 
parents, if he can make an expeditious and efficient beginning of 
the school. While the dull teacher is slowl^^ devising the plans 
he will by and by present for the employment and improvement 
of his school, the children, taking advantage of their own exemp- 
tion from labor, very promptly introduce their own plans for 
amusing themselves or for annoying him ; — whereas if he could 
but have his own plans already made, and could promptly 
and efficiently carry them into execution, he would forestall 
their mischievous designs, and make co-operators out of his 
opposers. 

In order to be sure of a successful commencement, I would rec- 
ommend that the teacher should go into the district a few days 
before the school is to begin. By careful inquiry of the trustees 
or the school committee, he can ascertain what is the character 



SCHOOL ARRANGEMENTS. 177 

of the district and the wants of the school. This will afford him 
considerable aid. But he should do more than this. He would 
do well to call on several of the families of the district whose 
children are to become members of his school. This he can do 
without any ceremony, simply saying to them that, as he has 
been appointed their teacher he is desirous as far as he may to 
ascertain their wants, in order to be as prompt as possible in the 
organization of his school. He will of course see the children 
themselves. From them he can learn what was the organization 
of the school under his predecessor; how many studied geogra- 
phy, how many arithmetic, grammar, etc.; and he can also learn 
whether the former organization was satisfactory to the district 
or not. The modes of government, and the methods of interest- 
ing the pupils practiced by the former teacher, would be likely to 
be detailed to him; and from the manner of both parents and 
children, he could judge whether similar methods would still be 
desirable in the district. By caUing on several of the largest 
families in this way, he would learn beforehand very accurately 
the state of the school and the state of the district. 

I will take this occasion to insist that the teacher, in these 
visits, should heartily discourage any forwardness, so common 
among children, to disparage a former teacher. It should be his 
sole object to gain useful information. He should give no signs 
of pleasure in listening to any unfavorable statements as to his 
predecessor; and I may add that during the progress of the 
school, he should ever frown upon any attempt on the part of the 
pupils to make comparisons derogatory to a former teacher. 
This is a practice altogether too prevalent in our schools ; and I 
am sorry to say there are still too many teachers who are mean 
enough to countenance it. Such a course is unfair, because the 
absent party may be grossly misrepresented; it is dangerous, 
because it tends to cultivate a spirit of detraction in the young; 
and it is mean, because the party is absent and has no opportu- 
nity of defending himself. 

Another important advantage of the visits proposed would be, 
that he would make the acquaintance of many of the children 

T. P.— 12 



178 PAGE'S THEORY AND PRACTICE. 

beforehand, and very likely-, too, if he should go in the right spirit 
and with agreeable manners, he would make a favorable impres- 
sion upon them, and thus he would have personal friends on his 
side to begin with. The parents too would see that he took an 
interest in his employment ; that he had come among them in the 
spirit of his vocation— in the spirit of earnestness, and they 
would become interested in his success,~a point of no small 
importance. 

I might here caution the teacher against a very common error. 
He should not confine his visits to the more wealthy and influen- 
tial families. The poor and the humble should receive his atten- 
tions as soon as the rich. From the latter class very likely a 
large portion of his school will come; and it is wrong in principle 
as well as policy to neglect those who have not been as successful 
as others in the one item of accumulating property. 

On the day of opening the school he should be early at the 
schoolhouse. Mr. Abbot, in his Teacher, has some valuable sug- 
gestions on this point. "It is desirable,'' he says, "that the 
young teacher should meet his scholars at first in an unofficial 
capacity. For this purpose, he should repair to the schoolroom, 
on the first day, at an early hour, so as to see and become 
acquainted with the scholars as they come in, one by one. He 
may take an interest with them in all the little arrangements 
connected with the opening of the school. The building of the 
fire, the paths through the snow, the arrangement of seats, call- 
ing upon them for information or aid, asking their names, and, in 
a word, entering fully and freely into conversation with them, just 
as a parent, under similar circumstances, would do with his chil- 
dren. All the children thus addressed will be pleased with the 
gentleness and affability of the teacher. Even a rough and ill- 
natured boy, who has perhaps come to the school with the 
express determination of attempting to make mischief, will be 
completely disarmed by being asked pleasantly to help the 
teacher fix the fire, or alter the position of a desk. Thus by 
means of the half hour during which the scholars are coming 
together, the teacher will find, when he calls upon the children to 



SCHOOL ARRANGEMENTS. 179 

take their seats, that he has made a large number of them his 
personal friends. Many of these will have communicated their 
first impressions to others, so that he will find himself possessed, 
at the outset, of that which is of vital consequence in opening any 
administration— a strong party in his favor." 

It will be well for the teacher, for several days, both in the 
morning and afternoon, to be early at the schoolroom. He can 
thus continue his friendly intercourse with the pupils, and effectu- 
ally prevent any concerted action among them at that hour to 
embarrass his government. Many a school has been seriously 
injured, if not broken up, by the scholars' being allowed to 
assemble early at the school with nothing to occupy them and 
no one to restrain them. Having so convenient an opportunity 
for mischief, their youthful activity will be very likely to find 
egress in an evil direction. Many a tale of roguery could be told 
founded upon the incidents of the schoolroom before school 
hours, if those who have good memories would but reveal their 
own experience ; — roguery that never would have occurred, had 
the teacher adopted the course here suggested. 



SECTION I.— PLAN OF THE DAY's WORK. 

It will be remembered by many of the readers of this volume, 
that in former times numerous teachers were accustomed to work 
without a plan, attempting to do their work just as it happened 
to demand attention, but never taking the precaution to have 
this demand under their own control. If one scholar or class 
w^as not ready to recite, another would be called; and there 
being no particular time for the various exercises, the school 
would become a scene of mere listlessness; and the teacher 
would hardly know how to find employment for himself in the 
school. 

I shall make this point clearer by an example. Having occa- 
sion, in an official capacity, to visit a school which had been kept 
by a young teacher some two weeks, she very naturally asked— 
" What shall I do first, this afternoon ? " 



180 PAGE'S THEORY AND PRACTICE. 

"Do precisely as you would if I had not come in," was the 
reply. 

She looked a little perplexed. At length she doubtingly asked, 
•' Is the geography lesson ready ? " 

"Yes, m'm" — "No, m'm" — "Yes, m'm," was the ambiguous 
reply from the class. There was so much of veto in the looks of 
the young geographers, that it amounted to prohibition. 
" Well, are the scholars in Colburn's arithmetic ready? " 

This was said with more of hope; but the same equivocal 
answer was vociferated from all parts of the room. The teacher, 
placing her finger upon her lip, looked despairingly; but rec- 
ollecting one more resort, she said,— "Is the grammar class 
ready?" 

Again came the changes on "Yes, m'm," and "No, m'm." 

The teacher gave up, and asked what she should do. She was 
again told to go on as usual for that afternoon. It was a tedious 
afternoon to her as it was to her visitor. She at length called 
one of the classes, unprepared as many of them said they were, 
and the exercise showed that none but those who said "Yes, 
m'm," were mistaken. The whole afternoon seemed to be one of 
pain and mortification to all concerned; and I fancied I could 
almost read in the knitted brow of the teacher a declaration that 
that should be her last school. 

At the close of the afternoon, a single hint was suggested to 
her,— viz., that she should make out a list of her scholars' duties, 
and the times when they should be expected to recite their several 
lessons. She was told that it would be well to explain this plan 
of her day's work to her school in the morning, and then never 
again ask whether a class was ready. The hint was taken ; and 
on subsequent visitations the several classes were ever ready to 
respond to the call of their instructor. 

Now this matter is no unimportant one to the teacher. 
Indeed I judge of a teacher's ability very much by the wisdom 
and tact with which he apportions his time for his own duties, 
and divides the time of his scholars between their studies and 
recitations. 



SCHOOL ARRANGEMENTS. 181 

In order to aid the young teacher in forming a plan for himself, 
I subjoin a scheme of a day's duties, adapted to a school of the 
simplest grade. Suppose a school to consist of thirty scholars, 
and that the teacher finds by inquiry and by examination that 
there may be four grand divisions ; the first, which he designates 
[A,] may unite in pursuing Reading, Grammar, Mental Arith- 
metic, Written Arithmetic, and Writing. The second [B,] can 
pursue Reading, Spelling, Writing, Geography, Mental and Writ- 
ten Arithmetic. The third [C,] attend to Reading, Spelling, Men- 
tal Arithmetic, Writing and Geography. The fourth [D,], con- 
sisting of the small pupils, attend to Reading, Spelling, Tables, 
and sundry slate exercises. 

Now it is very desirable that as much time should be devoted 
to recitation as can be afforded to each class. It may be seen at 
once that in certain studies, as geography, mental arithmetic, 
and spelling— the teacher can as well attend to fifteen at once as 
to seven. In these studies, unless the disparity in age and attain- 
ment is very great, two divisions can very properly be united. 
All can be taught writing at once, thus receiving the teacher's 
undivided attention for the time. Besides, it is necessary to 
reserve some little time for change of exercises, and also for the 
interruptions which must necessarily occur. The recesses are to 
be provided for, and some time may be needed for investigation 
of violations of duty, and for the punishment of offenders. All 
this variety of work will occur in every school, even the smallest. 
Now, if the teacher does not arrange this in accordance with some 
plan, he will be very much perplexed, even in a small school; and 
how much more in a large one! He will do well very carefully to 
consider the relative importance of each exercise to be attended 
to, and then to write out his scheme somewhat after the following 
model. It must not be forgotten that studying is also to be pro- 
vided for, and that it is just as important that the pupils should 
be regular in this as in recitation. Indeed, without such regu- 
larity he cannot expect acceptable recitations. 



182 



PAGE'S THEORY AND PRACTICE. 



PROGRAMME. 



TIME. 


M. 


RECITATIONS, ETC. 


STUDIES, 


y.OO to 9.15 


15 


Reading Script, and Pkayer. 




9.15 to 9.40 


25 


D. Reading, Spelling or Tables. 


A, Read.; B. Arith.: C. Geog. 


9.40 to 9.42 


2 


Rest, Change of Classes, etc. 




9.42 to 10.00 


18 


A. Reading. 


B.Arith.; C.Geog.; D. Slates. 


10.00 to 10.05 


5 


\ Rest, Singing or Answer- 
l iNG Questions. 




10.05 to 10.25 


20 


B. Arithmetic. 


{ A. Gram. ; C. Geog. ; D, Books 
} or Cards. 


10.25 to 10.28 


3 


Rest, etc. 




10.28 to 10.48 


20 


B. and C. Geography, 


A. Gram,; D, Recess. 


10.48 to 11.00 


12 


Recess. 




11.00 to 11.15 
11.15 to 11.85 
11.35 to 11.50 


15 
20 
15 


D. Reading, etc, 

A. Grammar. 

B. and C. Spelling. 


A. Gram. ; B. M. Arith. ; C. Spell. 

B. Spell.; C. Spell.; D. Slates. 
A. M. Arith. ; D. Books or Cards. 


11.50 to 12.00 


10 


General Exercise, 








Intermission. 




2.00 to 2.15 
2.15 to 2.45 
2.45 to 3.10 
3.10 to 3.30 


15 
30 
25 
20 


D. Reading, Spelling, Tables. 
A. B. and C. Writing. 
A. and B. Mental Arithmetic. 
C. Reading. 


A, Arith.; B. Read.; C. Read. 

D. Slates. 

C. M. Arith. ; D. Recess, 

A. Arith. ; B. Arith. ; D. B'ks,etc. 


3.30 to 3.40 


10 


Recess. 




3.40 to 4.00 


20 


B. Reading, 


A. Arith. ; C. M. Arith. ; D. Draw. 


4.00 to 4.05 


5 


Rest, or Singing. 




4.05 to 4.25 
4.25 to 4.55 


20 
30 


C. Mental Arithmetic. 
A. Arithmetic. 


S A. Read.: B. Arith, or Draw.; 
I D. Slates. 

B. Arith. or Draw.; C, Draw.; 
I D. Dismissed. 


4.55 to 5.00 


5 


Gen. Exer. and Dismission. 





SCHOOL ARRANGEMENTS. 183 



REMARKS. 



In the foregoing programme, the first column shows t\iQ division 
of time, and the portion allowed to each exercise. I need not say 
the teacher should be strictly punctual. To this end a clock is a 
very desirable article in the school. Both teacher and pupils 
would be benefited by it. The second column shows the recita- 
tions, admitting perhaps some variety, especially in case of the 
younger children ; while the third shows the occupation of those 
classes which are not engaged in recitation. 

It will be seen that the classes are studying those lessons which 
they are soon to recite; and, as in this case, it is supposed that 
all the lessons will be learned in school, each one has been pro- 
vided for. It would be well, however, in practice, to require 
one of the studies to be learned out of school, in which case no 
time should be allowed to the study of that branch in the pro- 
gramme. 

It will be perceived that drawing is placed as the occupation 
of the younger classes near the close of the afternoon. This is 
based upon the supposition, that the teacher, during recess, has 
placed an example on the blackboard, to be copied by the chil- 
dren upon their slates. This is perhaps the most effectual way to 
teach drawing to children. Those more advanced, however, may 
use paper and pencil, and draw from an engraved copy, or from a 
more finished specimen furnished from the teacher's portfolio. It 
is essential that the teacher should, if possible, give some speci- 
mens of his own in this branch. I have seldom known a teacher 
to excite an interest in drawing who relied altogether upon 
engravings as models for imitation. 

It should be remarked further concerning such a programme, 
that in case of an assista nt in the school two columns under the head 
oi Recitations should be formed — one for the principal's classes, 
and one for the assistant's. If there are a few talented scholars, 
who are able to do more than their class, they can be allowed to 
join some of the classes out of their division, or they may be pro- 
vided with an extra study, which will not need daily recitation. 



184 PAGE'S THEORY AND PRACTICE. 

In case the school is much larger than the one supposed above, 
and the classes necessarily so numerous as to make the time 
allowed to each study very short, then the principle of alterna- 
tion may be introduced; that is, some studies may be recited 
Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays,— and some other studies, 
with other classes, take their places on the alternate days. It is 
decidedly better for the teacher to meet a class, in arithmetic for 
instance, especially of older pupils, but twice or three times a 
week, having time enough at each meeting to make thorough 
work, than to meet them daily, but for a time so short as to ac- 
complish but little. The same remark may be applied to reading, 
and indeed almost any other branch. The idea is a mischievous 
one, that ever^^ class in reading, or in any other branch, must be 
called out four times a day, or even twice a day,— except in the 
case of very young children. It may be compared to nibbling at 
a cracker as many times in a day, without once taking a hearty 
meal,— a process which would emaciate any child in the course of 
three months. These scanty nibblings at the table of knowledge, 
so often and so tenaciously practiced, may perhaps account for 
the mental emaciation so often discoverable in many of our 
schools. 

The difficulty of classifying and arranging the exercises of a 
school, becomes greater as the number of teachers to be employed 
increases; and there is much greater inconvenience in allowing 
any pupils to study out of their own division, when the number 
of teachers is more than one or two. Few are aware of the diffi- 
culty of arranging the exercises of a large school, but those 
who have experienced it. It can be done, however; and it 
should always be done as soon as possible after commencing 
the school. 

If at any time the arrangement when made is not found to be 
perfect, it is not wise to change it at once. Let it go on a few 
days, and watch its defects with great care ; and in the meantime 
study, out of school, to devise a better. When this has been 
accompUshed, and committed to paper, and perfectly compre- 
hended by the teacher, it may be posted up in the schoolroom, 



SCHOOL ARRANGEMENTS. 185 

and the day announced when it will go into operation. It will 
soon be understood by the pupils, and the change can thus be 
made without the loss of time. 

Time for reviews of the various lessons could be found by set- 
ting aside the regular lessons for some particular day, once a 
week, or once in two weeks; and for composition, declamation, 
etc., a half day should be occasionally or periodically assigned. 

If I have devoted considerable space to this subject, it is 
because I deem it of very great importance to the teacher's suc- 
cess. With one other remark I dismiss it. The model is not 
given to be servilely copied. It is given to illustrate the great 
principle. The circumstances of schools will be found to vary so 
widely, that no model, however perfect in itself, would answer for 
all. The teacher must exercise his own ingenuity and judgment 
to meet his own wants; and in general it may be remarked that 
where a teacher has not the skill to adapt his own plans to his 
own circumstances, he can hardly be expected to succeed in carry- 
ing out the plans of another. 

SECTION II.— INTERRUPTIONS. 

In every school consisting of pupils of diffei^nt ages and cir- 
xiumstances, there will be more or less of interruption to the gen- 
eral order and employment of the school. Some of the pupils 
have never been trained to system at home; perhaps most of 
them may have been positively taught to disregard it at school. 
At any rate, "it must needs be," in this particular, "that offenses 
come." Nor should the teacher lose his patience though he 
should be often disturbed by the thoughtlessness of his pupils. 
He should expect it as a matter of course, and exercise his ingenu- 
ity as far as possible to prevent it. It may well be one of his 
sources of enjoyment to witness an improvement in the habits of 
his pupils in regard to system. 

These interruptions proceed from various causes,— such as 
soliciting leave to speak, or to go out ; asking for some assistance 
in learning lessons, or for leave to drink, or to stand by the fire; 



186 PAGE'S THEORY AND PRACTICE. 

requesting the teacher to mend pens, or to set copies; disorderly 
conduct in pupils, making it necessary, in his judgment, to admin- 
ister reproof or punishment in the midst of other duties,— and 
sometimes the vociferous and impatient making of complaints by 
one scholar against another. 

How many times I have seen a teacher involved in indescribable 
perplexity, while trying to perform the duty of instruction, an(] 
to ''get through" in time. While hearing a grammar lesson, a 
scholar brings up his atlas to have some place pointed out which 
he had upon one trial failed to find. The teacher, turning to look 
for the place, is addressed with, ''Please mend my pen," from 
another quarter. Having the knife in hand, as if such things 
were to be expected, the obliging teacher takes the pen, and 
holding it between his eyes and the atlas, endeavors to shape 
its nib and to discover the city at the same glance. ' ' Jane keeps 
a pinching me,"— vociferates a little girl who is seated behind 
the class. "Jane, Jane," says the teacher, turning away from 
both the nib and the city, " Jane, come to me instantly." Jane 
with the guilty fingers thrust far into her mouth makes her way 
sideling towards the teacher. "May I go out?"^says John, 
who is thinking only of his own convenience. "No, no," — 
answers the teacher, a little pettishly, as if conscious that in a 
crisis like this, a request simply to breathe more freely is scarcely 
justifiable. "Please sir, let me and Charles go out and get a pail 
of water." This is said by a little, shrewd-looking, round-faced, 
light-haired boy, who has learned how to select his time, and to 
place the emphasis upon the '^please, sir.'' The teacher by this 
time being considerably fretted by such an accumulation of busi- 
ness on his hands, very naturally thinks of the refreshment con- 
tained in a pail of cool water, and very good-naturedly answers 
the little urchin in the atfirmative, who most likely is by this 
time more than half way out of the door, so confident is he of suc- 
cess. Just at this juncture a considerate-looking miss in the class 
earnestly appeals to the teacher, to know if the word next but 
three to the last, was not a common noun though called a con- 
junction! This reminds the teacher that several words have been 



SCHOOL ARRANGEMENTS. 187 

parsed without his notice, and he asks the class to " stop there.'* 
Glancing at his watch, he discovers that he has gone three min- 
utes beyond the time for recess, and he relieves himself by saying, 
"boys may go out." This grants a truce to all parties. The 
pen goes back unmended; the atlas with its sought city undis- 
covered; John ''goes out" now by common law, taking to him- 
self the credit of this happy release, as he asked only to remind 
the master that it was time for recess ; Jane takes both thumb 
and finger from her precious little mouth, and smiling seats her- 
self by the side of her late challenger, who is by this time more 
than half repentant of her own impatience; the shrewd-looking 
urchin and his companion return with the refreshing pail of 
water,— the hoj^ and girls gather round to obtain the first 
draught, while the little chubby-faced lad comes forward, clothed 
in smiles, with a cup filled with the cooling liquid on purpose for 
the master ; the boon is accepted, the perplexed brow becomes 
placid, and all is sunshine again.— This is not a very extrava- 
gant picture of the interruptions in a district school. Those who 
have been brought up in such a school, will recognize the Sdelity 
of the likeness, as it has been drawn from nature. 

Now, whoever has any knowledge of human nature, and of 
school teaching, will at once see that this is all wrong. It is a 
law of our being, that we can do w^ell but one thing at a time. 
He who attempts more, must do what he attempts but very 
imperfectly. There was a great deal of wisdom embodied in that 
motto which used to be placed in the old Lancasterian schools: 

"A TIME FOR EVERYTHING, AND EVERYTHING IN ITS TIME." It 

should be one of the mottoes of every teacher. In the construc- 
tion of the plan or programme for the day's duties, great care 
should be taken to provide for all these little things. If whisper- 
ing is to be allowed at all in school, let it come into one of the 
intervals between recitations. If assistance in getting lessons is 
to be asked and rendered, let it be done at a time assigned for the 
special purpose. As far as possible, except in extreme cases, let 
the discipline be attended to at the time of general exercise, or 
some other period assigned to it, so that there shall not be a 



188 PAGE'S THEORY AND PRACTICE. 

ludicrous mixture of punishments and instruction during the 
progress of a class exercise. 

Here, as everywhere else in school management, the law of 
unity must be the teacher's guide. 

It is pleasant to Aisit a school, where everything is done and 
well done at its proper time. Teaching, under such circum- 
stances, becomes a delightful employment. But where all is con- 
fusion, and the teacher allows himself, by the accumulation of 
irregularities to be oppressed and perplexed, it is one of the most 
wearing and undesirable vocations on earth. The teacher goes 
to his lodgings harassed with care, oppressed with a conscious- 
ness of the imperfection of his labors, and exhausted by the 
unnatural and unwarrantable tax imposed upon his mental fac- 
ulties. He groans under the burden incident to his calling, and 
longs to escape from it, never once dreaming, perhaps, that he 
has the power of relieving himself by the introduction of system, 
and thus changing his former babel into a scene of quietness and 
order. 

SECTION m. —RECESSES. 

In speaking of the arrangements of a school, the subject of 
recesses demands attention. It is the belief of many enlightened 
instructors, that the confinement in most of our schools is still 
too protracted, and that more time devoted to relaxation w^ould 
be profitable both to the physical and the mental constitution of 
our youth. Some have urged a recess of a few minutes every 
hour, in order to afford opportunity for a change of position and 
a change of air. This could better be done in schools composed 
only of one sex, or where the accommodation of separate yards 
and play-grounds permits both sexes to take a recess at the 
same time. Where these accommodations are wanting, and one 
sex must wait while the other is out, the time required for two 
recesses, in half a day, for the whole school, could scarcely be 
afforded. I am of the opinion, as our schools are at present 
composed, that one recess in the half day for each sex is all 
that can be allow^ed. The question then is, how can that one 



SCHOOL ARRANGEMENTS. 189 

recess be made most conducive to the purposes for which it is 
designed? 

1. As to its duration. — Ten minutes is the least time that 
should be thought of, if the children are to be kept closely confined 
to study during the remainder of the three hours' session; that 
is, ten minutes for each sex. It would be a very desirable thing 
if our schoolhouses could be so furnished with separate play- 
grounds and separate out-door accommodations, that both sexes 
could take recess at the same time. This would save much time 
to the district in the course of a term, and it would also give 
opportunity for thoroughly ventilating the room during recess, 
while it would afford the teacher opportunity to take the air, and 
overlook the sports of the children to some extent,— a matter of 
no small importance. 

Where these facilities are wanting, and the teacher must 
remain within to preside over the one half of the school while the 
others are out, he may still give ten minutes at least to each sex, 
contriving to employ profitably the time within doors. He may 
reserve this time for settling such ditticulties as may have arisen 
in the school; he may administer reproofs, inflict his punish- 
ments if any are necessary, or he may spend the time in giving 
assistance to the pupils, or in drawing upon the blackboard for 
the advantage of the younger pupils as they come in. In a large 
school, where a longer recess is the more necessary on account of 
the bad air of the schoolroom, he will find the more duty to be 
done at this time; so that in any event the time need not be lost, 
even if fifteen minutes be allowed to each sex. 

2. As to the proper hour for recess.— It was an old rule to 
have recess when ^'school was half done.'' Indeed, this expres- 
sion was often used as synonymous with recess in many districts 
twenty-five years ago. It is now generally thought better to 
have the recess occur later, perhaps when the school session is 
two-thirds past. It is found that children, accustomed to exer- 
cise all the morning, can better bear the confinement of the first 
two hours than they can that of the third , even though the recess 
immediately precedes the third. In a school the half-daily ses- 



190 PAGE'S THEORY AND PRACTICE. 

sions of which are three hours, I should recommend that the 
recess be introduced so as to terminate at the close of the second 
hour. As far as possible, it ^YOuld be well to have all the pupils 
leave the room at the time recess is given them; and as a general 
thing they should not ask leave to go out at any other time. A 
little system in this matter is as desirable as in any other, and it 
is quite as feasible. 

In a school composed partly of very young children, there is 
no difficulty in giving such children two recesses each half dnj. 
Nor is there any objection to such a course. It is more irksome 
to young children to bear confinement, than to the adult; especi- 
ally as they cannot be expected to be constantly' occupied. It w ill 
relieve the teacher very much to have the children go out of the 
room as soon as they become fatigued, and, as it will promote 
their own health and happiness to go, it is very justifiable to 
grant them the privilege. This may properly and easily be pro- 
vided for upon the Programme. 

SECTION IV.— ASSIGNING LESSONS. 

Many teachers fail in this department. Judging of the difli- 
culty of the lesson by the ease with w^hich they can acquire it, 
even in a text-book new to themselves, they not infrequently 
assign more than can possibly be learned by the children. They 
forget that by long discipline of mind, and by the aid of much 
previously acquired knowledge, the lesson becomes comparatively 
easy to them ; they forget, too, the toil a similar lesson cost them 
when they were children. Now the effect of poorly learning a les- 
son is most ruinous to the mind of a child. He, by the habit of 
missing, comes to think it a small thing to fail at recitation. He 
loses his self-respect. He loses all regard for his reputation as a 
scholar. It is truly deplorable to see a child fail in a lesson 
with indifference. Besides, the attempt to acquire an unreas- 
onable lesson, induces a superficial habit of study,— a skim- 
ming over the surface of things. The child studies, that he 
may live through the recitation; not that he may learn and 
remember. He passes thus through a book, and thinks himself 



SCHOOL^ARRANGEMENTS. - 191 

wise while he is yet a fool,— a mistake that is no less common 
than fatal. 

The motto of the wise teacher should be, "Not how much, but 
HOW WELL." He should always ask, is it possible that the chird 
can master this lesson, and probable that he will? It is better 
that a class should make but very slow progress for several weeks, 
if they but acquire the habit of careful study and a pride of good 
scholarship — a dread of failure,— than that they should ramble 
over a whole field, firing at random, missing oftener than they 
hit the mark, and acquiring a stupid indifference to their reputa- 
tion as marksmen, and a prodigal disregard to their waste of 
ammunition, and their loss of the game. 

In assigning lessons, the importance of good habits of study 
should be considered, and the lessons given accordingly. At the 
commencement of a term, the lessons should always be short, till 
the ability of the pupils is well understood, and their habits as 
good students established. As the term progresses, they can be 
gradually lengthened as the capacity of the class will warrant, 
or their own desire will demand. It is frequently judicious to 
consult the class about the length of the lessons, though to be 
sure their judgment cannot always be relied on, for they are 
almost always ready to undertake more than they can well per- 
form. Assigning, however, somewhat less than they propose, 
will take from them all excuse for failure. When the lesson is 
given, a failure should be looked upon as a culpable dereliction 
of duty, as incompatible with a good conscience as it is with 
good scholarship. This high ground cannot be taken, however, 
unless the teacher has been very judicious in the assignment of 
the lesson. 

For the assignment of lessons, as for the hearing of recitations, 
the teacher should make special preparation. He can no more 
be judicious in laying out work for his classes without special 
study for that purpose, than he can excite and maintain interest 
in the recitation without having cleared his own knowledge and 
stirred his own enthusiasm by recent study of the lesson to be 
recited. If, when preparing the lesson for recitation, he will study 



192 PAGE'S THEORY AND PRACTICE. 

ahead for the assignment of the next lesson, he may secure a 
number of very valuable results : 

1. He will see the relation of the new lesson to the one preced- 
ing, and in the assignment of it he can call attention of the mem- 
bers of the class to such relation; or better, he will be able to ask 
them to find and state the relation. It is far too frequently the 
case that teachers assign, and students prepare lessons as though 
they were utterly independent of everything that has gone before 
or that is to follow. Each lesson should be seen as a related part 
of the entire subject. Thus, only, can the subject grow in the 
mind of the child into an organic unity. Unrelated, unorganized 
knowledge is of little value, and can do little toward producing a 
sustained interest in study. 

2. By thus studying the work before assigning it, he can decide 
wisely the proper length of the lesson, in the light of its difficulty 
and the ability of the class. 

3. He will be able to call attention to those parts that will 
require most careful study, and thus save the energy that might 
be wasted by devoting it equally to the points of least and those 
of greatest importance. 

4. He can direct attention to references and to collateral read- 
ings on points of special interest. This is of very great value, not 
only in exciting interest, but in promoting research and stimulat- 
ing independent inquiry. 

5. He can, if the nature of the work, and the advancement 
of the pupils will justify it, assign select topics, bearing upon the 
work in hand, to individual members of the class, and call for 
special oral or written reports, to be presented at the next 
recitation or at some other specified time. The other mem- 
bers of the class should be held responsible for the knowledge 
thus brought to them, the same as for that acquired from the 
text assigned. 

This definite assignment of text, references, collateral readings, 
and reports, will keep the pupils intelligently, pleasantly, and 
constantly employed, and will contribute largely toward solving 
the problem of school government. But, it must be insisted, these 



SCHOOL ARRANGEMENTS. 193 

desirable results cannot be relied upon unless the teacher makes 
special previous preparation for the assignment of lessons. 

SECTION v.— REVIEWS. 

In the prosecution of study by any class of students, frequent 
reviews are necessary. This is so, because the memory is very 
much aided by repetition and by association. But further, the 
understanding is often very much improved by a review. Many 
of the sciences cannot be presented in independent parts, nor can 
all the terms employed be fully appreciated till these parts are 
again viewed as a whole. Many things which were but dimly 
seen the first time they were passed over, become perfectly clear 
to the mind when viewed afterwards in connection with what 
follows them. 

In conducting reviews, regard must be had to the age and 
character of the pupils, and to the branch pursued. In arith- 
metic, and indeed in mathematics generally, where so much 
depends upon every link in the great chain, very frequent reviews 
are necessary. Indeed, almost daily it is profitable to call up 
some principle before gone over. In several branches, where the 
parts have a less intimate connection, as in geography, natural 
philosophy, and some others, the reviews may be at greater inter- 
vals. It would be well, I think, in every common school, to have 
a review at the close of each division of such subjects as are logi- 
cally divided. This, besides the advantages already indicated, 
will lead the children to study for something beyond recitation. 
Nor is it enough, at the review, that the questions of the text- 
book be again proposed to the children. If this be all, they will 
only exercise their memories. As far as possible the subject should 
be called up, and the application of principles to practical life 
should be dwelt upon. If this course is expected by the learners, 
they will think during the preparation of lessons, in order to 
anticipate the examination of the teacher; and this thinking is 
more profitable to them than the knowledge itself. 

It is always well, besides the reviews already mentioned, to 
have a general review at the close of any particular study. This 

T. p.— 13 



194 PAGE'S THEORY AND PRACTICE. 

enables the teacher to detect any false conceptions which the 
pupil has entertained during the first course. He can now pre- 
sent the subject as a whole, and view one part by the light of 
another. In natural philosophy, how much better the law of 
reflected motion can be appreciated after the subject of optics has 
been studied, in which the doctrine of reflection in general has 
been fully discussed and illustrated. In physiology, what light is 
thrown upon the process of growth in the system, by the subse- 
quent chapters on absorption and secretion. How much clearer 
is the economy of respiration understood when viewed in connec- 
tion with the circulation of the blood. A general review then is 
an enlightening process, and it is always profitable, with, per- 
haps, one exception. When it is instituted with reference to a 
public examination, it is very doubtful whether the evil is not 
greater than the good. It then degenerates into an effort to 
appear well at a particular time; it is again studying in order to 
recite; and I look upon it as no small evil, that the mind should 
have any object in view which comes in between it and the grand 
desire to know,— to master the subject for its own sake, and not 
simply for the purpose of being able to talk about it on one great 
occasion. 

SECTION VI.— PUBLIC EXAMINATIONS. 

As the usage still prevails in many localities of having public 
examinations or exhibitions,— generally at the close of a term or 
a portion of a term,— in order to test, in some measure, the indus- 
try and skill of the teacher, and the proficiency of the pupils, a 
few words may be devoted to their consideration. I am hardly 
prepared to oppose this usage, because I am inclined to believe 
examinations are of some utility as a means of awakening an 
interest in the parents of the children; perhaps they do some- 
thing to stimulate school oflftcers, and also to excite to greater 
effort during the term both the teacher and the pupils. Still, 
public examinations, as frequently conducted, are not without 
serious objections. 

1. They certainly cannot be looked upon as criterions of the 



SCHOOL ARRANGEMENTS. 195 

faithfulness or success of teachers. A man with tact, and with- 
out honesty, may make his school appear to far greater advan- 
tage than a better man can make a better school appear. This 
has often happened. It is not the most faithful and thorough 
teaching that makes the show and attracts the applause at a 
public exhibition. It is the superficial, mechanical, memoriter 
exercise that is most imposing. Who has not seen a class, that 
recited by rote and in concert at a celebration, win the largest 
approbation, when many of the individuals knew not the import 
of the words they uttered. Names in geography have been thus 
*' said or sung," when the things signified were to the children 
as really terrsB incognitas as the fairy lands of Sinbad the Sailor. 

2. Nor can such exhibitions be claimed justly to indicate the 
proficiency of the pupils. Every experienced teacher knows that 
the best scholars often fail at a public examination, and the most 
indolent and superficial often distinguish themselves. The spec- 
tators, not infrequently, in pointing out the talent of the school, 
make the teachers smile at their blunders. 

3. They present a strong temptation to dishonesty on the 
part of the teacher. Since so much stress is laid upon the exam- 
ination, and particularly, in some regions, upon the Celebration, 
where several schools are brought together to make a show for a 
few hours, it must be rather an uncommon man who will have 
sufficient principle to exhibit his school as it is, and refuse to 
make those efforts so very common to have it appear what it is 
not. The wish, expressed or implied, of the parents, and the am- 
bition of the children, all conspire to make the teacher yield to a 
usage so common. Consequently, several weeks will be spent to 
prepare the children to appear in public. During this time, they 
study not for improvement, not for future usefulness, but simply 
to make a show at the public celebration. An unworthy and 
unwarrantable motive actuates them during all this process; and, 
at last, unless strangely benighted, they are conscious of holding 
up a false appearance to the world. Now, under such circum- 
stances, whatever of good is effected, by way of enkindling a zeal 
in the parents, is dearly purchased. The sacrifice of principle in 



196 PAGE'S THEORY AND PRACTICE. 

a teacher— much more in the children— is a large price to pay for 
the applause of a few visitors, or even for an increase of interest 
among them in the cause of popular education. 

Examinations, however, which are less showy, and which are 
of such a character as thoroughly to sift the teachings that have 
been given, and to thwart any ingenious efforts specially to pre- 
parefor them— examinations that look back to the general teach- 
ing of the term, or the year, and test the accuracy and thorough- 
ness of the instructions — are unquestionably very desirable and 
useful. To make them so in the highest sense, and to exempt 
them from an evil tendency upon the minds of the young them- 
selves, the teacher should he strictly honest. Not a lesson should 
be given with sole reference to the exhibition at the close ; not an 
exercise should be omitted because the examination approaches. 
The good teacher should keep those great motives before the mind, 
which look to future usefulness, and to the discharge of duty. The 
child should be taught that he is accountable for what he acquires, 
and what he ma j acquire, and not for what he mayappeaztohave 
acquired ; and that this accountability is not confined to a single 
day, soon to pass and be forgotten ; but it runs through all time 
and all eternity. 

I know not but the expectation of an examination may stimu- 
late some to greater exertion, and make them better scholars. If 
this be so, it may be well enough; and yet I should be slow to pre- 
sent such a motive to the mind of a child, because a special or 
secondary accountability always detracts from the general and 
chief. 

A strong reason, in addition to those already assigned, why 
special preparation should not be made for the examination, is, 
that where such preparation is expected, the pupils become care- 
less in their ordinary exercises. 

While, then, I think too much stress is at present placed upon 
showy exhibitions and celebrations, and that objections and 
dangers attend examinations, as frequently conducted, I would 
not recommend altogether their discontinuance. I would rather 
urge that the teacher, by his inflexible honesty, should make 



SCHOOL ARRANGEMENTS. 197 

them fair representations of the actual condition of his school, 
without relying very much upon them as a means of stimulat- 
ing the pupils to exertion; that the pupils should be made to 
feel that the results of their exertion through the term, rather 
than a few special efforts near its close, would be brought 
into review; that no hypocrisy or management should ever be 
tolerated, in order to win the applause of the multitude; that no 
particular lessons should ever be assigned for the occasion; that 
it should be remembered, that the moral effect of an occasional 
failure at examination, will be more salutary upon the school 
than unbroken success; and that the children are irreparably 
injured, when they are made in any way the willing instru- 
ments of f arise pretension. 

Under such circumstances, examinations may be profitable to 
all concerned. If teacher and pupils have done well, they have 
the opportunity of showing it without violence to their own con- 
sciences. The employers, and patrons too, have some means of 
forming a correct estimate of the value of their school; and all 
parties may be encouraged and stimulated. But above all 

things, LET THE TEACHER BE HONEST. 



CHAPTER XI. 

THE teacher's RELATION TO THE PARENTS OF HIS PUPILS. 

In the choice of a clergyman, after estimating his moral and 
religious character, and ascertaining the order of his pulpit tal- 
ents, a third question remains to be answered, viz.:— What are 
his qualifications as ^pastor? How is he adapted to fulfill the 
various relations of private friend and counselor; and in the 
family circle, in his intercourse with the aged and the young, how 
is he fitted to 

"Allure to brighter worlds and lead the way?" 

In that sacred profession everyone knows that nearly as much 
good is to be done by private intercourse as in the public minis- 
tration. Many a heart can be reached by a friendly and informal 
conversation, that would remain unmoved by the most powerful 
eloquence from the pulpit. Besides, many are prepared to be 
profited in the public exercises by that intercourse in private 
which has opened their hearts, removed prejudice, and engendered 
a feeling of friendly interest in the preacher. The admonitions of 
the gospel thus have the double power of being truth, and truth 
uttered by the lips of a valued friend. 

It is, to some extent, thus with the school teacher. He may 
be very learned and very apt to teach, and yet fail of success in 
his district. Hence it is highly important that he should possess 
and carefully cultivate those social qualities, which will greatly 
increase his usefulness. The teacher should consider it a part of 
his duty, whenever he enters a district, to excite a deeper interest 
there among the patrons of the school than they have ever before 
felt. He should not be satisfied till he has reached every mind 
connected with his charge in such a way, that they will cheerfully 
co-operate with him and sustain his judicious efforts for good. 
(198) 



TEACHER'S RELATION TO PARENTS. 199 

Being imbued with a deep feeling of importance of his work, 
he should let them see that he is alive to the interests of their 
children. To this end, — 

1. He should seek frequent opportunities of intercourse with 
the parents.— Though the advances tow^ard this point, by the 
strict rules of etiquette, should be made by the parents them- 
selves— (as by some it is actually and seasonably done)— yet, as 
a general thing, taking the world as we find it, the teacher must 
lead the way. He must often introduce himself uninvited to the 
people among whom he dwells, calling at their homes in the spirit 
of his vocation, and conversing with them freely about his duty 
to their children and to themselves. Every parent of course will 
feel bound to be courteous and civil in his own house; and by 
such an interview, perhaps a difference of opinion, a prejudice, or 
a suspicion may be removed, and the foundation of a mutual 
good understanding be laid which many little troubles can never 
shake. It may be very useful to have an interview with such 
parents as have been disturbed by some administration of disci- 
pline upon members of their families. Let me not be understood, 
however, to recommend that the teacher should ever go to the 
parent in a cringing, unmanly spirit. It would probably be far 
better that the parties should ever remain entire strangers, than 
that their meeting should necessarily be an occasion of humilia- 
ting retraction on the part of the teacher. Neither should the 
parents ever be allowed to expect that the teacher always will as 
a matter of duty come to their confessional. But it is believed, 
if there could be a meeting of the parties as men, as gentlemen, as 
Christians, as coadjutors for the child's welfare, it would always 
be attended with good results. 

2. He should be willing to explain all his plans to the parents 
of his pupils. — If they had implicit confidence in him, and would 
readily and fully give him every facility for carrying forward all 
his designs without explanation, then, perhaps, this direction 
might not be necessary. But as the world is, he cannot expect 
spontaneous confidence. They wish to know his designs, and it is 
best they should be informed of them by himself. The best way 



200 PAGE'S THEORY AND PRACTICE. 

for the teacher to interest them in the business of education, will 
be freely to converse with them concerning the measures he 
intends to adopt. If his plans are judicious, ♦he of course can 
show good reasons why they should be carried into effect ; and 
parents are generally willing to listen to reason, especially when 
it is directed to the benefit of their own children. Many a parent, 
upon the first announcement of a measure in school, has stoutly 
opposed it, who upon a little explanatory conversation with the 
teacher, would entertain a very different opinion, and ever after 
would be most ready to countenance and support it. 

It seems to me a teacher may safely encourage inquiry into all 
his movements in school. There is an old saying— in my opinion 
a mischievous one,— which enjoins it as a duty upon all, to "tell 
no tales out of school." I see no objection to the largest liberty 
in this matter. Why may not everything be told, if told cor- 
rectly ? Parents frequently entertain a suspicious spirit as to the 
movements of the teacher. Would not very much of this be done 
away, if it was understood there was no mystery about the 
school? The teacher who would thus invite inquiry, would be 
very careful never to do anything which he would not be willing 
to have related to the parents, or even to be witnessed by them. 
I would have no objection, if it were possible, that the walls of 
our schoolrooms, as you look inward, should be transparent, so 
that any individual unperceived might view with his own eyes the 
movements within. The consciousness of such an oversight w^ould 
work a healthy influence upon those who have too long delighted 
in mystery. 

3. The teacher should encourage parents frequently to visit his 
school.— There is almost everywhere too great backwardness on 
the part of parents to do this duty. The teacher should early 
invite them to come in. It is not enough that he do this in gen- 
eral terms. He may fix the time, and arrange the party, so that 
those who would assimilate, should be brought together. It will 
frequently be wise to begin with the mothers, where visitation has 
been unusual. They will soon bring in the fathers. As often as 
they come they will be benefited. W^hen such visits are made, the 



TEACHER'S RELATION TO PARENTS. 201 

teacher should not depart from his usual course of instruction 
on their account. Let all the recitations and explanations be 
attended to, all praises and reproofs, all rewards and punish- 
ments be as faithfully and punctually dispensed as if no person 
were present. In other words, let the teacher faithfully exhibit 
the school just as it is, its lights and its shadows, so that they 
may see all its workings, and understand all its trials as well as 
its encouragements. 

Such visitations under such circumstances, it is believed, would 
ever be highly beneficial. The teacher's difficulties and cares would 
be better understood, and his efforts to be useful appreciated. 
But if the teacher makes such visits the occasion for putting a 
false appearance upon the school; if he takes to himself unusual 
airs, such as make him ridiculous in the eyes of his pupils, and 
even in his own estimation; if he attempts to bring before the 
visitors his best classes, and to impress them with his own skill 
by showing off his best scholars, they will, sooner or later, dis- 
cover his hypocrisy, and very likely despise him for an attempt 
to deceive them. 

4. The teacher should be frank in all his representations to 
parents concerning their children.— This is a point upon which 
many teachers most lamentably err. In this, as in every other 
case, "honesty is the best policy." If an instructor inlprms a 
parent during the term that his son is making rapid progress, or 
as the phrase is — "doing very well," he excites in him high 
expectations; and if at the end of the term it tui-ns out other- 
wise, the parent with much justice may feel that he has been 
injured, and may be expected to load him with censure instead of 
praise. Let a particular answer, and a true one, always be given 
to the inquiry — "How^ does my child get along?" The parent 
has a right to know, and the teacher has no right to conceal the 
truth. Sometimes teachers, fearing the loss of a pupil, have 
used some indefinite expression, which, however, the doting par- 
ent is usually ready to interpret to his child's advantage. But 
sooner or later the truth will appear; and when the teacher is 
once convicted of any misrepresentation in this particular, there 



202 PAGE'S THEORY AND PRACTICE. 

is rarely any forgiveness for him. For this reason and for his 
own love of trnth. for his own reputation and for the child's wel- 
fare, he should keep nothing back. He should tell the whole 
story plainly and frankly,— and the parent, if he is a gentleman, 
will thank him for his faithfulness to him; and if he has any 
sense of justice, he will be ready to co-operate with him for his 
child's improvement. At any rate such a course will insure the 
reward of a good conscience. 

The teacher, as I have before urged, should have the habits 
and manners of a gentleman. He should strive also to acquire 
the ability to converse in an easy and agreeable way, so that his 
society shall never be irksome. He, in other words, should be a 
man who does not require much entertaining. Modesty, withal, 
is a great virtue in the teacher; especially in his intercourse 
with the people of his district. Teachers, from their almost con- 
stant intercourse with their pupils, are apt to think their own 
opinions infallible; and they sometimes commit the ridiculous 
error, of treating others wiser than themselves as children in 
knowledge. This infirmity, incident to the profession, should be 
carefully avoided; and while the teacher should ever endeavor to 
make his conversation instructive, he should assume no airs of 
superior learning or infallible authority. He should remember 
the tru^h in human nature, that men are best pleased to learn 
without being reminded that they are learners. 

I have known some teachers, who have sneered at what they 
have termed, the "out-door work" here recommended. They 
have thrown themselves upon their dignity, and have declared 
that when they had done their duty within the schoolroom, they 
had done all that could be expected, and that parents were 
hound to co-operate with them, and sustain them. But, after 
all, we must take the world as we find it; and since parents c7o 
not always feel interested as they should, I hold it to be a part of 
the teacher's dutj' to excite their interest, and to win them to his 
aid by all the proper means in his power. In doing this, he will, 
in the most effectual way secure the progress of his school, and 
at the same time advance his own personal improvement. 



CHAPTER XII, 



No employment is more wearing to the constitution than the 
business of teaching. So many men falter in this emplo^^nent 
from ill health, and so many are deterred from entering it, because 
they have witnessed the early decay and premature old age of 
those who have before pursued it; so many are still engaged in it 
who almost literally "drag their slow length along," groaning 
under complicated forms of disease and loss of spirits, which 
they know not how to tolerate or cure,— that it has become a 
serious inquiry among the more intelligent of the profession, 
"■ Cannot something be known and practiced on this subject, 
which shall remove the evils complained of?" Is it absolutely 
necessary that teachers shall be dyspeptics and invalids? Must 
devotion to a calling so useful, be attended with a penalty so 
dreadful? 

A careful survey of the facts, by more than one philanthropist, 
has led to the conclusion, that the loss of health is not a neces- 
sary attendant upon the teacher of the young. It is believed, 
indeed, that the confinement from the air and sunhght, and the 
engrossing nature of his pursuits, have a strong tendency to 
bring on an irritability of the nervous system, a depression of 
spirits, and a prostration of the digestive functions; but it is also 
believed, that, by following strictly and systematically the known 
laws of health, this tendency maj be successfully resisted, and 
the teacher's life and usefulness very much prolonged. The im- 
portance of the subject, and a desire to render this volume as 
useful as possible, has induced me to ask leave to transfer to its 
pages, with slight abbreviation, the very judicious and carefully 
written chapter on '^Health — Exercise — Diet," contained in the 
<' School and the Schoolmaster," from the gifted pen of George B. 

(203) 



204 PAGE'S THEORY AND PRACTICE. 

Emerson, Esq., of Boston, one of the most enlightened educators 
of the present age. 

HEALTH — EXERCISE — DIET. 

" The teacher should have perfect health. It may seem almos't 
superfluous to dwell here upon what is admitted to be so essential 
to all persons; but it becomes necessary, from the fact that 
nearly all those who engage in teaching, leave other and more 
active employments to enter upon their new calling. By this 
change, and b}' the substitution of a more sedentary' life within- 
doors, for a life of activity abroad, the whole habit of the body 
is changed, and the health will inevitably suffer, unless precau- 
tions be taken which have never before been necessary. To all 
such persons — to all, especially, who are entering upon the work 
of teaching with a view of making it their occupation through 
life, a knowledge of the laws of health is of the utmost impor- 
tance, and to such this chapter is addressed. I shall speak of 
these laws briefly, under the heads of Exercise, Air, Sleep, Food, 
and Dress. 

"Exercise.— So intimate is the connection between the various 
parts of our compound nature, that the faculties of the mind 
cannot be naturally, fully, and effectually exercised, without 
the health of the body. And the first law of health is, that 
which imposes the necessity of exercise. 

"The teacher cannot be well without exercise, and usually a 
great deal of it. No other pursuit requires so much,— no other 
is so exhausting to the nerves; and exercise, air, cheerfulness, 
and sunshine, are necessary to keep them in health. Most other 
pursuits give exercise of body, sunshine, and air, in the very per- 
formance of the duties that belong to them. This shuts us up 
from all. 

" One of the best, as one of the most natural modes of exercise, 
is walking. To give all the good effects of which it is susceptible, 
a walk must be taken either in pleasant company, or, if alone, 
with pleasant thoughts ; or, still better, with some agreeable end 
in view, such as gathering plants, or minerals, or observing other 



TEACHER'S CARE OF HIS HEALTH. 205 

natural objects. Many a broken constitution has been built up, 
and many a valuable life saved and prolonged, by such a love of 
some branch of natural history as has led to snatch every oppor- 
tunity for a walk, with the interest of a delightful study, 

" ' Where living things and things inanimate 

Do speak, at Heaven's command, to eye and ear.' 

The distinguished geologist of Massachusetts, President Hitch- 
cock, was once, when teacher of a school, reduced to so low a 
state by disease of the nerves, which took the ugly shape of dys- 
pepsia, that he seemed to be hurrying rapidly towards the grave. 
Fortunately he became interested in mineralogy, and this gave 
him a strong motive to spend all his leisure time in the open 
air, and to take long circuits in every direction. He forgot 
that he was pursuing health, in the deeper interest of science; 
and thus aided by some other changes in his habits, but not in 
his pursuits, he gradually recovered the perfect health which has 
enabled him to do so much for science, and for the honor of his 
native State. 

" Riding on horseback is one of the best modes of exercise pos- 
sible for a sedentary person. It leads to an erect posture, throws 
open the chest, gives a fuller breathing, and exercises the muscles 
of the arms and upper part of the frame. ... In weakness of 
the digestive organs its eflBcacy is remarkable. . . . 

"^ garden furnishes many excellent forms of exercise, and the 
numerous labors of a farm would give every variety, if the 
teacher could be in a situation to avail himself of them. This is 
not often the case. When accessible, the rake, the pitchfork, 
moderately used, cannot be too highly recommended. A. garden 
is within the reach of most teachers in the country. It has the 
advantage of supplying exercise suited to every degree of 
strength, and of being filled with objects always gratifying to 
the eye and the taste. . . . The flower-garden and shrub- 
bery commend themselves to the female teacher. To derive 
every advantage from them, she must be willing to follow 



206 PAGE'S THEORY AND PRACTICE. 

the example often set by the ladies of England, and use the hoe, 
the rake, the pruning-hook, and the grafting knife, with her 
own hands. 

''Rowing, when practicable, is a most healthful exercise. It 
gives play to every muscle and bone in the frame. . . . When 
the river is frozen, skating may take the place of rowing ; and it 
is an excellent substitute. . , . Driving a chaise or a sleigh, is 
a healthful exercise, if sufficient precaution be used to guard 
against the current which is alw^ays felt, as it is produced by the 
motion of the vehicle, even in still air. 

''Sawing and splitting wood form a valuable exercise, par- 
ticularly important for those who have left an active life for the 
occupation of teaching. 

" Exercise should be taken in the early part of the day. War- 
ren Colburn, the author of the Arithmetic, whose sagacity in 
common things was as remarkable as his genius for numbers, 
used to say, that half an hour's walk before breakfast did him 
as mu(^h good as an hour's after. Be an early riser. The air of 
morning is more bracing and invigorating; the sights, and 
sounds, and odors of morning are more refreshing. A life's expe- 
rience in teaching declares the morning best. . . . 

"Exercise must always be taken, if possible, in the open air. 
Air is as essential as exercise, and often, in warm weather partic- 
ularly, more so. They belong together. The blood flows not as 
it should, it fails to give fresh life to the brain, if we breathe not 
fresh air enough. The spirits cannot enjoy the serene cheerful- 
ness which the teacher needs, if he breathe not fresh air enough. 
The brain cannot perform its functions; thought cannot be quick, 
vigorous, and healthy, without ample supplies of air. Much of 
the right moral tone, of habitual kindliness and thankful rever- 
ence, depends on the air of heaven. 

" Exercise must be taken in the light; and if it may be, in the 
sunshine. Who has not felt the benignant influence of sunshine? 
The sun's light seems almost as essential to our well-being as his 
heat, or the air w^e breathe. It has a great effect on the nerves. 
A distinguished physician of great experience. Dr. J. C. Warren 



TEACHER'S CAR?] OF HIS HEALTH. 207 

of Boston, tells me that he almost uniformly finds diseases that 
affect the nerves exasperated by the darkness of night, and miti- 
gated by the coming on of day. All plants growing in the air 
lose their strength and color when excluded from li^ht. So in a 
great degree does man. They lose their fine and delicate quali- 
ties, and the preciousness of their juices. Man loses the glow of 
his spirits, and the warmth and natural play of his finer feel- 
ings. . . . 

" Next to air and light, water is the most abundant element in 
nature. It can hardly be requisite to enjoin upon the teacher the 
freest use of it. The most scrupulous cleanliness is necessary, not 
only on his own account, but that he may be able always to 
insist upon it, with authority, in his pupils. The healthy state 
of the nerves, and of the functions of digestion, depends in so 
great a degree on the cleanliness of the skin, that its importance 
can hardly be overstated. . . . 

" Sleep.— No more fatal mistake in regard to his constitution 
can be made by a young person given to study than that of sup- 
posing that Nature can be cheated of the sleep necessary to 
restore its exhausted, or strengthen its weakened powers. From 
six to eight hours of sleep are indispensable; and with young 
persons, oftener eight or more, than six. It is essential to the 
health of the body, and still more to that of the mind. It acts 
directly on the nervous system ; and irritability, or what is 
called nervousness, is the consequence of its loss. This, bad in 
any person, is worse in the teacher than in anyone else. It 
is an unfailing source of unhappiness to himself and to all 
his school. He would be unwise to subject himself to the 
consequences of the loss of sleep; he has no right to subject 
others. . . . 

" Diet.— To no person is an attention to diet more important 
than to the teacher. For his own guidance, and that he may be 
able to give proper instructions in regard to this subject to his 
pupils, the conclusions of experience, or what we may consider 
the laws of diet, should be familiar to him. Some of these are the 
following : 



208 PAGE'S THEORY AND PRACTICE. 

"1. Food should be simple; not of too little nor«too great 
variety. The structure of the teeth, resembling at once those of 
animals that naturally subsist on flesh, and of animals that take 
only vegetable food, and the character and length of the diges- 
tive organs, holding a medium between the average of these two 
classes, indicate that a variety of food, animal and vegetable, is 
natural to man, and in most cases probably necessary. The 
tendency in most parts of this countr^^, from the great abund- 
ance of the necessaries of life, is to ^G to excess in the consump- 
tion of food, particularly of animal food. The striking evils of 
this course have led many to the opposite extreme — to renounce 
meats entirely. Experience of the evils of this course also has 
in most places brought men back to the safe medium. No person 
needs to be more careful in regard to the quality and nature of 
his food than the teacher, as his exclusion from air for a great 
part of the day leaves him in an unfit condition to digest 
unwholesome food, while the constant use of his lungs renders 
his appetite unnaturally great, or destroys it altogether. Ani- 
mal food seems to be necessary, but not in great quantities, nor 
oftener, usually, than once a day. ... In winter, the food 
should be nourishing, and maybe more abundant; in summer, 
less nutritious, less of animal origin, and in more moderate 
quantity. 

"2. Food should be taken at sufficiently distant intervals. 
. . . The operation of digestion is not completed, ordinarily, 
in less than four hours. Food should not be taken at shorter 
intervals than this, and intervals of five or six hours are better, 
as they leave the stomach some time to rest. 

" 3. It should be taken in moderate quantity. In the activity 
of common life, excess is less to be dreaded than with the seden- 
tary habits and wearying pusuits of the teacher. . . . The 
exhaustion of teaching is that of the nervous power, and would 
seem to call for hours of quiet, and freedom from care, with 
cheerful conversation and the refreshment of air and gentle 
exercise. Probably all the kinds of food in general use are 
wholesome when partaken of moderately. Those who, from 



TEACHER'S CARE OF HIS HEALTH. 209 

choice or compulsion, pass from an active to a sedentary life, 
should at the same time restrict themselves to a smaller quan- 
tity of food. 

"4. As a general rule /a^ should be avoided. . . . None 
but a person who uses a great deal of most active exercise, or is 
much exposed to cold, can long bear its use with impunity. If 
taken, fat in a solid form is less injurious than liquid fat. 

" 5. Fruit may be eaten with the recollection of the proverb of 
fruit-producing countries : 'It is gold in the morning, silver at 
noon, and lead at night.' Ripe fruit in its season is wholesome, 
and preferable for a person of sedentary habits, to more nourish- 
ing and exciting food. But it should be a substitute for other 
food, not an addition. A bad practice, common in some places, 
of eating fruit, especially the indigestible dried fruits, raisins, and 
nuts, in the evening, should be avoided by the teacher. He must 
have quiet and uninterrupted sleep, and early hours, to be patient^ 
gentle, and cheerful in school." 

The drink of a sedentary person should be chiefly water. If 
taken with meals it should be hot. During the process of diges- 
tion little or no drink should be taken ; if taken at all, it should 
not be very cold. After digestion is complete, the system is bene- 
fited by a reasonable supply of cold water. A cup of cold water 
an hour before meals tones and cleanses the stomach prepara- 
tory to receiving a fresh supply of food.* 

" 7. The last rule to be observed is, that no unnecessary exer- 
tion of mind or body should be used immediately after a meal. 
If a walk must be taken it should rather be a Msurely stroll than 
a hurried walk. 

"Dress.— The teacher should be no sloven. He should dress 
well, not over nicely, not extravagantly; neatly, for neatness he 
must teach by example as well as by precept; and warmly, for so 
many hours of the day shut in a warm room will make him 
unusually sensitive to cold. The golden rule of health should 
never be forgotten: 'Keep the head cool, the feet warm, and the 



* This paragraph is substituted for that of Mr. Emerson, in the belief that it is 
more in harmony with the present development of hygienic science, 
T. P.— ti 



210 PAGE'S THEORY AND PRACTICE. 

body free.' The dress of the feet is particularly important. 
Coldness or dampness of the feet causes headache, weakness and 
inflammation of the eyes, coughs, consumptions, and sometimes 
fevers. A headaclie is often cured by sitting with the feet long 
near a fire. Keeping the feet warm and dry alleviates the com- 
mon affections of the eyes, repels a coming fever, prevents or 
quiets coughs, and serves as one of the surest safeguards against 
consumption. Many of our most sensible physicians trace the 
prevalence of consumption in northern states, not to our climate, 
but to the almost universal custom of wearing insufficient cloth- 
ing, especially on the feet. 

<' There is another subject intimately connected with health, 
which has been alluded to, but which ought, from its importance, 
to receive more than a passing remark. It is cheerfulness. This 
should be one of the ends and measures of health. It ought to 
be considered the natural condition of a healthy mind ; he who is 
not cheerful is not in health. If he has not some manifest moral 
cause of melancholy, there must be something wrong in the body, 
or in the action of the powers of the mind. 

"A common cause of low spirits in a teacher, is anxiety in 
regard to the well-doing of his pupils. This he must feel; but he 
must endeavor, as far as possible, to banish it from his hours of 
relaxation. He must leave it behind him when he turns from the 
schoolhouse door. To prevent it haunting him, he must seek 
pleasant society. He must forget it among the endearments of 
home, the cheerful faces and kind voices of friends. This is the 
best of all resources, and happy is the man who has a pleasant 
home, in the bosom of which he may rest from labor and from 
care. If he be among strangers, he must endeavor to find or 
make friends to supply the place of home. He must seek the 
company of the parents and friends of his pupils, not only that 
he may not be oppressed by the loneliness of his situation, but 
that he may better understand the character of his pupils, and 
the influences to which they are subjected. The exercise of the 
social affections is essential to the healthy condition of a well- 
constii-vited mind. Often he will find good friends and pleasant 



TEACHER'S CARE OF HIS HEALTH. 211 

companions among his pupils. Difference of years disappears 
before kindliness of feeling, and sympathy may exist between 
those most remote in age, and pursuit, and cultivation. 

"A delightful, but somewhat dangerous recreation is offered by 
music; delightful, as always soothing to the wearied mind; but 
dangerous, because liable to take to itself too much time. It 
would be desirable if every instructor could himself sing or play. 
If he cannot, let him listen to songs or cheerful music from voice 
or instrument, or to the notes of birds. 

" ' I'm sick of noise and care, and now mine ear 
Longs for some air of peace.'" 



CHAPTER XIII. 
teacher's relation to his profession. 
It has long been the opinion of the best minds in our country 
as well as in the most enlightened countries of Europe that teach- 
ing should be a profession. It has been alleged, and with much 
justice, that this calling, which demands for its successful exercise 
the best of talents, the most persevering energy, and the largest 
share of self-denial, has never attained an appreciation in the 
public mind at all commensurate with its importance. It has by 
no means received the emolument, either of money or honor, which 
strict justice would award in any other department to the talents 
and exertions required for this. This having been so long the 
condition of things, much of the best talent has been attracted at 
once to the other professions; or if exercised awhile in this, the 
temptation of more lucrative reward, or of more speedy, if not 
more lasting honor, has soon diverted it from teaching, where so 
little of either can be realized, to engage in some other depart- 
ment of higher promise. So true is this, that scarcely a man can 
be found, having attained to any considerable eminence as a 
teacher, who has not been several times solicited— and perhaps 
strongly tempted— to engage in some more lucrative employ- 
ment; and while there have always been some strong men, who 
have preferred teaching to any other calling, — men who would do 
honor to any profession, and who, while exercising this, have 
found that highest of all rewards, the consciousness of being use- 
ful to others, — still it must be confessed that teachers have too 
often been of just that class which a knowledge of the circum- 
stances might lead us to predict would engage in teaching; men 
of capacity too limited for the other professions, of a tempera- 
ment too sluggish to engage in the labors of active employment, 
and sometimes of manners too rude to be tolerated except in the 
(212) 



TEACHER'S RELATION TO HIS PROFESSION. 213 

society of children. Thus two great evils have been mutually 
strengthening each other. The indifference of the employers to 
the importance of good teachers, and their parsimony in meting 
out the rewards of teaching, have called into the field large num- 
bers, in the strictest sense, unworthy of all reward; while this 
very unworthiness of the teachers has been made the excuse for 
further indifference, and if possible for greater meanness on the 
part of employers. Such has been the state of the case for many 
years past, and such is, to a great extent, the fact at present. 

It has been the ardent wish of many philanthropists that this 
deplorable state of affairs should be exchanged for a better. 
Hence they have urged that teaching should be constituted a 
profession ; that none should enter this profession but those who 
are thoroughly qualified to discharge the high trust; and, as a 
consequence, that the people should more liberally reward and 
honor those who are thus qualified and employed. This would 
indeed be a very desirable change; it would be the educational 
millennium of the world. For such a period we all may well 
devoutly pray. 

But how shall this glorious age — not yet arrived — be ushered 
in ? By whose agency, and by what happy instrumentality must 
its approach be hastened? Here, as in all great enterprises, 
there is some difference of opinion. Some have urged that the 
establishment of normal schools and other seminaries for the 
better education of teachers, and the institution of a more vigi- 
lant system of supervision, by which our schools should be effect- 
ually guarded against the intrusion of the ignorant and inefficient 
teacher, is all that is necessary to bring in this brighter day. 
Others have zealously urged that such preparation and such 
supervision are entirel}^ superfluous and premature in the present 
state of the public mind. They say that the public must first 
become more liberal in its appropriations for schools ; it must at 
once double the amount it has been accustomed to pay to teach- 
ers, and thus secure, without further trouble, the best talent to 
this vocation. To this the former class reply, that the public 
has seldom been known to raise its price, so long as its wants 



214 PAGE'S THEORY AND PRACTICE. 

could be supplied at the present rates. They say that the last 
century has afforded ample opportunity for the exhibition of this 
voluntary genei'osity of the public, and yet we still wait to see 
this anomaly in human prudence, of offering- in advance to pay 
double the price for the same thing ; for until better teachers a re 
raised up, it must be an advance upon the present stock. So 
there is a division among them, "for some cry one thing and 
some another." 

Now, I believe, in this case as in most others, the truth lies 
between the extremes. As the evil complained of is a mutual 
one, as has already been shown — that is, an illiberal public 
has tolerated incompetent teachers, and the incompetence of 
teachers has enhanced in turn the parsimony of the public,— so 
the remedy must be a mutual one; the public must be enlightened 
and teachers must be improved; the pay of teachers must be 
raised, but there must be also something to warrant the higher 
rate. Nor is it easy to determine which shall begin first. We can 
hardly expect the people to pay more till they find an article 
worth more; nor, on the other hand, can we expect the teachers 
to incur any considerable outlay to improve themselves, until 
better encouragement shall be held out to them by their employ- 
ers. The two must generally proceed together. Just as in the 
descending scale, there was a mutual downward tendency, so 
here, better service will command better pay, and in turn, the 
liberality of employers will stimulate the emplo^^ed to still higher 
attainments in knowledge and greater exertions in their labors. 

In this condition of things, the question recurs. What is the 
duty of teachers in relation to their calling? I answer, they are 
bound to do what they can to elevate it. Lord Bacon said, 
"Every man owes a debt to his profession." Teachers being- 
supposed to be more intelligent than the mass of the community, 
may justly take the lead in the work of progress. They should, 
as a matter of duty, take hold of this work,— a work of sacri- 
fice and self-denial as it will be, at least for some time,— and 
heartily do what they can to magnify their office and make it 
honorable. In the meantime they may do what they can to 



TEACHER'S RELATION TO HIS PROFESSION. 215 

arouse the people to a sense of their duty. The more enlightened 
are to some extent with them already. The press, the pulpit, the 
legislative assemblies, all proclaim that something must be done. 
All admit the faithful teacher has not been duly rewarded, and 
some are found who are willing to do something for the improve- 
ment both of the mind and condition of the teacher. This is 
encouraging; and while we rejoice at the few gleams of light that 
betoken our dawning, let us inquire, for a little space, how we can 
hasten the " coming in of the perfect day." 

SECTION I. —SELF-CULTURE. 

The teacher should labor diligently to improve himself. —This 
is a duty incumbent on all persons, but particularly upon the 
teacher. The very nature of his employment demands that his 
mind should be frequently replenished from the storehouses of 
knowledge. To interest children in their studies, how necessary 
is it that the teacher's mind should be thoroughly furnished with 
the richest thoughts of the wise ; to inspire them with a desire to 
learn, how important that he should be a living example of the 
advantage and enjoyment which learning alone can bestow; to 
strew the path of knowledge with flowers, and thus make it the 
path of pleasantness, how desirable that he should abound with 
the aptest illustrations drawn from all that is wonderful and 
curious in nature and art; to awaken the young mind to a con- 
sciousness of its capacities, its wants, its responsibilities, how 
thoroughly should he know all the workings of the human 
soul,— how wisely and carefully should he touch the springs of 
action,— how judiciously should he call to his aid the conscience 
and the religious feelings! 

Besides, let it be remembered that in this as in other things, 
the teacher's example is of great importance. The young will be 
very likely to judge of the importance of their own improvement 
by the estimate the teacher practically places upon his; nor can 
he with any good grace press his pupils to exertion, while they 
see that he makes none whatever himself. 

There is great danger, in the midst of the confinement and 



216 PAGE'S THEORY AND PRACTICE. 

fatigue of the schoolroom, and the pressure of anxiety and care 
out of school, that the teacher will yield to the temptations of his 
position, and fall into habits of indolence as to his own improve- 
ment. Compelled, as he often is, to labor at great disadvantage, 
by reason of a small and poorly furnished schoolroom ; confined 
through the day from the sunshine and the fresh breeze; subjected 
to a constant pressure of duty amid untold trials of his patience, 
arising from the law that impels children to be active as well as 
inconsiderate; required to concentrate his powers upon the 
double duty of governing and teaching at the same instant, and 
all through the session, — it is not strange, when the hour of 
release comes, that he should seek rest or recreation at the near- 
est point, even to the neglect of his own mental or moral culture. 
I am of the opinion that this accounts for the fact that so many 
persons enter the work of instruction, and continue in it for a 
longer or shorter period, without making the slightest progress 
either in the art of teaching or in their own intellectual growth. 
Their first school indeed is often their best. This tendency, or 
temptation, incident to the calling, it is the teacher's duty con- 
stantly and manfully to resist. He can do it. 

1. He has the time to do it.—B.e is usually required to spend 
but six hours in the day in the schoolroom. Suppose he add two 
hours more for the purpose of looking over his lessons and devis- 
ing plans for improving his school,— he will still have sixteen 
hours for sleep, exercise, recreation, and improvement. Eight 
hours are sufficient for sleep, especially for a sedentary man 
(some say less), and four will provide for meals, exercise, and 
recreation. Four still remain for improvement. Any teacher 
who is systematic and economical in the use of his time, can 
reserve for the purpose of his own improvement four hours in 
every twenty-four, and this without the slightest detriment to his 
school duties, or to his health. To be sure he must lead a regu- 
lar life. He must have a plan, and systematically follow it. He 
must be punctual, at his school, at his meals, at his exercise or 
recreation, at his hour of retiring and rising, and at his studies. 
Nor should he ordinarily devote more time than I have mentioned 



TEACHER'S RELATION TO HIS PROFESSION. 217 

directly to his school. He should labor with his whole soul while 
he does work, and he will the more heartily do this, if he has had 
time to think of something else during the season of respite from 
labor. It is a great mistake that teachers make when they think 
they shall be more successful by devoting all their thoughts to 
their schools. Very soon the school comes to occupy their sleep- 
ing as well as waking hours, and troublesome dreams disturb 
the repose of night. Such men must soon wear out. 

But according to the laws of our nature, by a change of occu- 
pation, the jaded faculties find rest. By taking up some new sub- 
ject of inquiry, the intellect is relieved from the sense of fatigue 
which before oppressed it, the thoughts play freely again, the 
animation returns, the eye kindles, and the mind expands. 

2. Such labor finds immediate reward.— The consciousness of 
growth is no small thing towards encouraging the teacher. He 
feels that he is no longer violating his nature by allowing himself 
to stagnate. Then he will find every day that he can apply the 
newly-acquired truth to the illustration of some principle he is 
attempting to teach. He has encouraging and immediate proof 
that he is a better teacher and that he has made himself so by 
timely exertion. He is thus again stimulated to rise above those 
temptations before described, — this immediate availability of his 
acquirements being vouchsafed to the teacher, as it is not to 
most men, in order to prompt him to stem the current which 
resists his progress. 

And now, if I have shown that a teacher is bound to improve 
himself, both from a regard to his own well-being and the influ- 
ence of his example upon others, —and if I have also shown that 
he can improve himself, I may be indulged in making a few sug- 
gestions as to the manner of his doing it. 

1. He should have a course of professional reading. — It will 
do much for his improvement to read the works of those who 
have written on the subject of education and the art of teaching. 
If possible he should collect and possess a small educational 
library. 

The literature of the teaching profession is becoming quite 



218 PAGE'S THEORY AND PRACTICE. 

Yoluminons, and much of it is of a highly commendable char- 
acter. It may be roughly separated into three divisions on the 
basis of the general purpose it will serve; viz.: 

1. The literature of information. 

2. The literature of inspiration. 

3. The literature of power. 

The first division contains works on the history of education 
and of educational systems, such as Compayre's "History of 
Pedagogy;" Painter's "History of Education;" Boone's " His- 
tory of Education in the United States;" Hailman's "Lectures 
on Education;" Quick's "Essays on Educational Reformers;" 
Gill's "Systems of Education," etc. The importance to the 
teacher of the history of what has been accomplished in the 
educational field, can hardly be over-estimated. Without such 
knowledge he is likely to expend his energies in discovering for 
himself what had long before been found out for him, or in copy- 
ing obsolete models that have long since been discarded by the 
advance guard of the profession. On the other hand, if he 
thoroughly informs himself ns to the latest and best achieve- 
ments, he may, on that basis, make improvements or discover 
something new, and so make some real contribution toward the 
advancement of the profession. Or, if he can add nothing new, 
he can, at least, practice and propagate the best that is known. 
Meanwhile his pupils are saved from much of the damage arising 
from ignorant experiment, or blind copyism. 

The second division consists chiefly of educational biography, 
and contains such works as Laurie's "John Amos Comenius;" 
Krusi's ''Life of Pestalozzi;" "The Life and Work of Froebel;" 
the "Life of Thomas Arnold;" the "Life of Horace Mann;" the 
" Life of Mary Lyon," and others. Surely the teacher, if anyone, 
needs something to cheer and inspire him in the midst of petty 
details, and the humdrum of daily routine, and to lift him into 
the clear atmosphere of high ideals and holy purposes. And 
what better means for securing such moral elevation can he find 
than the contemplation of the struggles and triumphs of the 
heroes and heroines of his own profession? 



TEACHER'S RELATION TO HIS PROFESSION. 219 

In the third division are works on Educational Psychology, 
the Science of Education, the Science of Teaching, the Science of 
Method, etc., snch as Dewey's "Psychology;" Sully's "Outlines of 
Psychology;" Spencer's " Education;" Joseph Payne's "Science 
and Art of Education;" Rosenkranz's "Philosophy of Educa- 
tion;" Bain's "Education as a Science;" Hailman's Froebel's 
"Education of Man;" Greenwood's "Principles of Education 
Practically Applied;" Horace Mann's "Lectures on Education," 
and those of D'Arcy Wentworth Thompson; Bain's "Education 
as a Science;" Thring's "Theory and Practice of Teaching;" 
Fitch's "Lectures on Teaching;" Landon's "School Manage- 
ment ;" Thompson's "School Management;" DeGarmo's "Essen- 
tials of Method," and many others. The teacher, by knowing 
the nature and laws of the child's mind, the springs that move 
its powers to action, the proper order of these activities, the 
appropriate stimulus for the healthy action and growth of each, 
and the correct method of applying the stimulus, will have, so 
far as knowledge can give it to him, the elements of teaching 
power. 

Besides the works classified in these three lists, there are many, 
each of which contains more or less that is instructive and valu- 
able in all lines indicated. Among them may be mentioned 
Rousseau's "Emile;" Abbott's "The Teacher;" Pestalozzi's 
" Leonard and Gertrude," and " How Gertrude Teaches Her Chil- 
dren;" Laurie's "Primary Instruction," and "The Training of 
Teachers;" Miss Martineau's "Household Education;" Thomp- 
son's "Day Dreams of a Schoolmaster;" and a single work 
that sums up the information, inspiration, and power of many 
others, is "The Teacher in Literature," issued by the publishers 
of this volume. 

The teacher should have access, also, to such general works as 
Kiddle and Schem's " Cycloxjsedia of Education," and the writ- 
ings of Locke, Wyse, Cousin, Lalor, and Lord Brougham on 
Education. 

That he may keep in touch with the educational movements 
of his own day, the teacher should read some good educational 



220 PAGE'S THEORY AND PRACTICE. 

journal. The amount of magazine literature devoted to tho 
profession has become so considerable, and the number of strong 
educational articles appearing in the metropolitan magazines is 
so great, that he has ample opportunity for such reading. 

It is not to be expected that every teacher will possess all 
these, or that he will read them all in a single term. But it is 
well to hold converse with other minds, and to have it in our 
power to review their best thoughts whenever our own need 
refreshing. I have given a somewhat extended list of books 
because the inquiry is now so often made by teachers what they 
shall read. 

2. By pursuing systematically a course of general study.— 
Many teachers who have a desire to improve themselves, still 
fritter away their time upon little miscellaneous matters, with- 
out making real progress. It is well in this to have a plan. Let 
some one study,— it m.ay be geology, or astronomy, or chemis- 
try, or botany, or the pure mathematics,— let some one study 
receive constant attention till no mean attainments have been 
made in it. By taking one thing at a time and diligently pursu- 
ing it, at the end of a term the teacher feels that he has some- 
thing to show for his labor,— and he is, by the advance already 
made, prepared to take the next and more difficult step. In a 
course of years while a neighbor who began teaching at the same 
time, has been stagnating, or even retrograding for the want of 
a plan and a purpose, a diligent man, by sj^stem and persever- 
ance, may make himself at least equal to many who have en- 
joyed better advantages in early life, and at the same time have 
the superadded enjoyment of feeling that he has been his own 
teacher. 

3. Keep a journal or common-place book. — The habit of 
composing daily is very valuable to the teacher. In this book he 
may record whatever plans he has devised, with their results in 
practice. He may enter remarkable cases of discipline, — in short, 
anything which in the course of his practice he finds interesting. 
Those valuable suggestions which he receives from others, or 
hints that he may derive from books, may be epitomized here, 



TEACHER'S RELATION TO HIS PROFESSION. 221 

and thus be treasured up for future reference. Sometimes one's 
best thoughts fade from his own mind, and he has no power to 
recall them. Such a book would preserve them, and would more- 
over show the character of one's thoughts at any particular 
period, and the progress of thought, from one period to another, 
better than any other means.* 

To these means of self-culture I would add the practice of care- 
fully reading and writing on chosen subjects, more fully described 
in the chapter on Habits of the Teacher. 

By all these means and such others as may come within his 
reach, if a teacher succeeds in his attempts at progress, he does 
much for his profession. The very fact that he has given practi- 
cal demonstration that a man may teach and still improve; that 
the temptations of his profession may be resisted and overcome; 
that the life of the pedagogue, which has required him to keep the 
company of small minds, and to be occupied with minute objects, 
has never prevented his holding communion with the greatest 
men our earth has known, nor circumscribed in the least the 
sphere of his grasping research, — I say the very fact that he has 
thus shown what a man may do under such circumstances, may 
do much to encourage others to like effort. 

But there are other and direct duties which he owes to his 
profession, which I proceed to consider under the head of 

SECTION II.— MUTUAL AID. 

Every teacher should be willing to impart as well as to receive 
good. No one, whatever may be his personal exertions, can 
monopolize all the wisdom of the world. The French have a 
proverb that "Everybody is wiser than anybody." Acting on 
this principle, the teacher should be willing to bring his attain- 
ments into the common stock, and to diffuse around him as far 
as he is able the light he possesses. I have no language with 
which to express my abhorrence of that selfishness, which prompts 
a man, after attaining to some eminence as a teacher by the free 



*For further remarks on the Common-place Book, see chap, vii, p. 98, note. 



222 PAGE'S THEORY AND PRACTICE. 

use of all the means within his reach, self-complacently to stand 
aloof from his fellow teachers, as if he would say, " Brethren, help 
yourselves — I have no need of you, and you have no claim upon 
me. I have toiled hard for my eminence, and the secret is with 
me. I will enjoy it alone. When you have toiled as long, you 
may be as wise. Brethren, help yourselves." Such a spirit would 
perhaps be tolerated by the world in an avaricious man, who had 
labored to treasure up the shining dust of earth. But no man 
may innocently monopolize knowledge. The light of the sun 
is shed in golden refulgence upon, every man, and no one if he 
would, may separate a portion for his own exclusive use, by clos- 
ing his shutters about him — for that moment his light becomes 
darkness. It is thus with the light of knowledge. Like the air 
we breathe, or like the rain from heaven, it should be free to all. 
The man who would lock up the treasures of learning from the 
gaze of the whole world, whether in the tomes of some dusty 
library, as of old it was done, or in the recesses of his nar- 
rower soul, is unworthy of the name of man; he certainly has 
not the spirit of the teacher. 

An exclusive spirit may be born where meaner things, as 
houses, and lands, and gold, are at stake; but in education and 
religion — light and love,— where giving doth not impoverish nor 
withholding make rich, there is not even the shadow of an excuse 
for it. The man who is exclusive in these things, would be so, I 
fear, in heaven. 

How can teachers encourage each other? 

1. By mutual visitation. — Very much maybe done by social 
intercourse. Two teachers can scarcely converse together an 
hour without benefiting each other. The advantages of inter- 
course with friends, as delineated by Dr. Young, may not be 
denied to teachers. 

"Hast thou no friend to set thy mind abroach? 
Good sense will stagnate. Thoughts shut up want air, 
And spoil Hke bales unopened to the sun. 
Had thought been all, sweet speech had been denied. 



TEACHER'S RELATION TO HIS PROFESSION. 223 

Thought, too, delivered, is the more possessed; 
Teaching:, we learn; and giving, we retain 
The births of intellect; when dumb, forgot 
Speech ventilates our intellectual fire; 
Speech burnishes our mental magazine, 
Brightens for ornament and whets for use." 

But not only should teachers visit one another,— it is profit- 
able also for them to visit eaeli other's schools. I have never 
spent an hour in the school of another without gaining some 
instruction. Sometimes a new way of illustrating a difficult 
point, sometimes an exhibition of tact in managing a difficult 
case in discipline, sometimes an improved method of keeping up 
the interest in a class, would suggest the means of making my 
own labors the more successful. And even should one's neighbor 
be a bad teacher, one may sometimes learn as much from wit- 
nessing glaring defects as great excellencies. Some of the most 
profitable lessons I have ever received, have been drawn from the 
deficiencies of a fellow teacher. We seldom "see ourselves as 
others see us; " and we are often insensible of our own faults till 
we have seen them strikingly exhibited by another ; and then by 
a comparison we correct our own. 

Besides, by a visitation of a friend's school we may not only 
receive good, but we may impart it. If there is mutual confi- 
dence, a few words may aid him to correct his faults, if he has 
any,— faults which but for such suggestion might grow into 
confirmed habits, to his permanent injury. 

So important is this mutual visitation among teachers as a 
means of improvement, that I doubt not employers would find it 
for their interest to encourage it by allowing the teachers to set 
apart an occasional half day for this purpose. 

It would, moreover, be very useful for the teachers of a town 
to hold stated meetings, as often as once a month, for the pur- 
pose of mutual improvement. It would cultivate a fellow-feeling 
among them, and it would afford them an opportunity to 
exchange thoughts on most of the difficulties which they meet in 
their schools, and the best methods of surmounting them. At 



224 PAGE'S THEORY AND PRACTICE. 

these meetings, a mutnal exchange of books on the subject of 
teaching, would extend the facilities of each for improving his 
own mind and his methods of instruction and government. 

2. By the use of the pen. — Every teacher should be a ready 
writer. Nearly every teacher could gain access to the columns of 
some paper, through which he could impart the results of his 
experience, or of his reflection. Such a course w^ould benefit him 
specially, and at the same time it would awaken other minds to 
thought and action. In this way the attention, not only of 
teachers, but parents, would be called to the great w^ork of edu- 
cation. One mind in this w^ay might move a thousand. If a 
teacher does not feel qualified to instruct, then let him inquire, 
and thus call out the wisdom of others. This could be done 
in near] 3^ every village. The press is almost always ready to 
promote the cause of education. By the use of it, teachers 
may profitably discuss all the great questions pertaining to 
their duty, and at the same time enlighten the community in 
which they live. This is an instrumentality as yet too little 
employed. 

3. By Teachers' Associntions or Institutes.— The purpose of 
the Teachers' Institute, whether it be the County Institute of one 
or two weeks, or the Township Institute of one or two days, must 
not be mistaken. It cannot properly loe regarded as an occasion 
for greatly extending the teacher's information concerning the 
history of his profession, nor for increasing, materially, his scho- 
lastic knowledge of the subjects he is to teach; but rather as 
"times of refreshing," when new inspiration is received, and 
teaching power is multiplied. The aim of those who instruct in 
Institutes should be to state and explicate general principles, 
and to unfold rational methods, such that the teachers can carry 
them at once into successful practice in their daily work. 

The Institute has been, and still continues to be an instrumen- 
tality of very great value to the profession in generating a pro- 
fessional spirit and developing teaching power, and no common 
school teacher who ignores it can hope to long keep his place in 
the progressive ranks. These are peculiarly adapted to the 



TEACHER'S RELATION TO HIS PROFESSION. 225 

diffusion of the best plans of instruction. Rightly conducted, they 
can never fail of being useful. Every man who lectures or teaches, 
is profited by the preparation. If he is a man of wisdom and 
experience, he will benefit his hearers. If otherwise, the discus- 
sion, which should ever follow a lecture, will expose its fallacies. 
It has often happened in such associations, that an honest and 
experienced man has, in a half hour, given to the younger portion 
of the members, lessons of wisdom which it would take them 
years to learn by their own observation. Errors in principle and 
practice have been exposed, into which many a young teacher 
was unconsciously falling, and hints have been given to the 
quicker minds, by which their own modes of teaching and gov- 
erning have been speedily improved. 

As far as possible, such meetings should be made strictly prac- 
tical. The older teachers, who usually have the most to do with 
the management of them, should bear in mind that they are 
mainly designed to diffuse practical ideas of teaching, particu- 
larly among the younger members. Too often, these meetings are 
made the arena of debate upon questions of very little practical 
importance to the teacher. I have seen a body of men spend an 
entire session of a half day, in discussing a series of overwrought 
resolutions, upon some topic scarcely at all connected with any 
duty of the teacher, frequently leaving the main question to 
wrangle about some point of order, or of '' parliamentary usage;" 
and after the resolutions were passed or rejected, as the case 
might be— (and it was of very little consequence whether ''car- 
ried'' or "lost"),— the ladies and younger teachers who had 
borne no part in the talk, would find it difficult to tell ''where- 
fore they had come together." Nothing had been said or done 
by which they could be aided in their schools. Lecturers, too, 
have frequently mistaken their aim. Ambitious to shine out as 
literary men, they have given orations instead of practical les- 
sons. In these meetings, it seems to me, nothing ostentatious, 
nothing far-fetched is what we need ; but rather the modes and 
experience of practical men. We need to come down to the 
schoolroom, to the everyday business of the teacher, and thus 

T. P.— 15 



226 PAGE'S THEORY AND PRACTICE. 

prepare him to do his work more successfully on his return to his 
duties. 

Another, and no inconsiderable advantage of such associa- 
tions, is, that the teacher gains encouragement and strength, 
by being thus brought in contact with others engaged in the 
same pursuit. Toiling on alone, in his isolated district, sur- 
rounded by obstacles and discouragements, weighed down by 
care, and finding none to sympathize with him, he is almost ready 
to faint in his course, and perhaps to abandon his calling. At 
this crisis, he reads the notice for the teachers' meeting, and he 
resolves to go up once more to the gathering of his friends. 
From the various parts of the county, from the populous and 
crowded city, and from the byways of the country towns, a 
goodly number collect together and greet each other. Smile 
answers to smile, the blood courses more freely through the 
veins, the spirits, long depressed perhaps, partake of the general 
glow, and each feels that he is not toiling alone. He feels that a 
noble brotherhood of kindred spirits are laboring in the same 
field, under trials and discouragements similar to those which 
have oppressed him. He derives new strength from the S3^mpa- 
thy of friends. 

A professional ieeling is engendered, which will accompany him 
to his schoolroom ; and when he goes home, it is with renewed 
vigor and fresh aspirings to be a better man, and a better 
teacher. He labors with more confidence in himself ; and, enlight- 
ened by what he has seen and heard, he is far more successful 
than before. His pupils, too, respond to the new^ life they see 
enkindling in him, and go to their work more cheerfully. One 
difficulty after another vanishes, and he begins to think teach- 
ing, after all, is not the worst employment in the world, but that 
it has some flowers as well as thorns ; and he concludes to remain 
in the profession. This has been the history of at least one man. 
Long may many others have occasion to exercise gratitude like 
his, for the enjoyment of similar privileges. 



TEACHER'S RELATION TO HIS PROFESSION. 227 

I ouglit not to leave this subject without a word or two of 
caution. 

1. Be honest.— In all your intercourse with your fellow-teach- 
ers, be careful to use the words of "truth and soberness." In 
stating your experience, never allow your fancy to embellish your 
facts. Of this there is great danger. The young are sometimes 
tempted to tell a good story ; but a deviation from the truth— 
always perilous, and always wrong— may be peculiarly disastrous 
here. Experience overstated, may egregiously mislead the unwary 
inquirer after truth. Never over-color the picture; it is better to 
err on the other side. 

So, likewise, in exhibiting your school to fellow-teachers, be 
strictly honest. They come to learn from your everyday prac- 
tice, and not from a counterfeit ; and whenever you dress your 
school in a showy garb, to win the applause of a fellow-teacher, 
you do him a great injustice. You may not please your friend so 
much by your ordinary mode, as by something assumed for the 
occasion; but you may profit him far more; and in the end, you 
lose nothing by pursuing the line of duty. 

I well remember, that a somewhat distinguished teacher once vis- 
ited my own school, who, on going away, expressed himself some- 
what disappointed, because he did not see anything " extraordi- 
nary,^' as he said, in my mode of procedure. The truth was, 
nothing extraordinary was attempted. He saw what I wished to 
show him, an ordinary day's work ; for I had before that time 
imbibed the opinion, that a man's reputation will be more firmly 
established, by sustaining every day a fair mediocrity, than it 
ever can be by an attempt to outdo himself on a few special 
occasions. As the value of biographical writing is often very 
much diminished, because the writer has endeavored to paint his 
character too perfect to he human,— so these visitations will lose 
their utility, whenever, by substituting hollow pretension for 
sober reality, the teacher endeavors to exhibit such a school as 
he does not daily keep. 

2. A void servile imitation of any model.— It is often remarked, 
that every man's plan is the best for him; and that many besides 



228 PAGE'S THEORY AND PRACTICE^ 

David can never fight in Saul's armor. This is generally true. 
All experience, then, should be considered, in connection with the 
circumstances under which it was tried, never forgetting the 
character and genius of the person who relates it. What might 
succeed in his hand, may fail in yours; particularly, as you will 
lack the interest of an original inventor. 

The true secret lies in listening to the views of all, and then in 
making a judicious combination to meet your own character, 
and your own circumstances. It is often better to adjust and 
adapt the plan of another, than to adopt it. Servile imitation 
precludes thought in the teacher, and reduces him to a mere 
machine. The most successful teachers I have ever known, were 
those who would listen attentively to the plans and experience 
of others, and then strike out a course for themselves, attempting 
that, and that only, which they were confident they could suc- 
cessfully execute. 

3. Avoid undue self-sutSciencj. — Men usually cease to learn 
when they think they are wise enough. The teacher is in danger 
of falling into this error. Moving for the most part among chil- 
dren, where his decisions are seldom questioned, he is very apt to 
attach undue importance to his own opinions. Such a man meets 
his fellows with much self-complacency, and is but poorly pre- 
pared to be profited by the views of others. But the teacher 
sliould never cease to be teachable. There are very few men too 
old, or too wise to learn something; and they are the wisest if 
not the oldest, who are willing to welcome a real improvement, 
even though it should come from comparative ' ' babes and suck- 
lings," out of whose mouths God has sometimes perfected praise. 



CHAPTER XIV. 

MUTUAL DUTIES OF PARENTS AND TEACHERS. 

It is a matter of deep regret, that a profession, which affords 
so extensive a field for usefuhiess as the teacher's should be so 
generally crowded with difficulties and discouragements, as to 
compel a large portion of the talent, which might otherwise be 
engaged in it to seek employment and distinction elsewhere. In 
high hopes and with flowing spirits, many a young man enters 
upon the business of instructing, carrying to the work a well-, 
furnished mind, and a large share of zeal,— when suddenly and 
unaccountably to himself, he finds that he is surrounded by trials 
he had never foreseen,— troubles which have come without his seek- 
ing, and of such a nature as to render his situation anything but 
desirable. He does what his ingenuity and his own warm, fresh 
heart suggest to remove the evils ; but, though he may change 
the place, he too often still keeps the pain. A few weeks, or per- 
haps months, pass heavily away in vain attempts to find some 
mitigation of his difficulties; his days being spent in patience- 
trying effort, and his nights disturbed by dreams of the future, 
which are but a literal transcript of the past; or if they take not 
their form from the finished day, they still can hardly be so 
extravagant as to be beyond the probability of fulfillment on the 
morrow. Between his waking and his sleeping labors,— his rest 
being a toil, and his toil a pain,— finding daily his strength fail- 
ing him, his flesh wasting away, his health suffering, and his soul 
sinking, he determines to have relief^ not,, however, by com- 
mitting suicide, for that would violate the law of nature and 
the law of God; but by the abandoninent of his profession, which 
neither violates that instinct, teaching that "self-preservation is 
the first law of nature," nor that passage of Scripture which 
declares, that "if any provide not for his own, he hath denied 

(229) 



230 PAGE'S THEORY AND PRACTICE. 

the faith, and is worse than an infidel." This probably is in 
substance the historj^ of more than one half of those who com- 
mence school - teaching with a view to make it a permanent 
profession. 

There are others, however, who have nerve enough to outlive 
their first six months, and who devote themselves unremittingly 
to their labors for a longer period ; but very few among these 
ever become so attached to their chosen employment as to be 
unwilling to leave it for some other occupation, which may offer; 
an expedient which, we believe, almost every professional teacher 
has taken into his calculations for the future, and to which he 
looks forward with no very particular reluctance. 

The profession of the teacher is certainly an important one; 
it should be a happy one. The adverse influences should be 
removed, and the teacher should be left free to devise his own 
plans, and to find his enjoyment in witnessing the success attend- 
ant upon their execution. We would not ask for greater emolu- 
ment,— though considering the fact, that a teacher's best years 
are spent in his duties, and when his best years are passed 
away, an enlightened community usually judges him not 
only unfit for school-keeping, but for everything else, we are 
constrained to believe, that the matter of compensation has 
been little enough thought of. We would not ask for greater 
respect and attention; we believe, that in general, the in- 
structor has received his share of these, in proportion to his 
merits. But we should ask for sympathy; for soul-cheering 
sympathy on the part of the parents of those we are called to 
instruct; we would plead for their aid as far as the}^ can assist 
us, and then we could go to the work at least with some gleam- 
ings of encouragement. 

We have spoken of the difficulties of the school-teacher. It is 
not our purpose to 'enter into a detailed enumei*ation of these; 
it is sufficient, perhaps, for us to allege, that n hirge part of 
them have their origin in the want of co-operation, or the wis- 
directed influence of the parentis. 

Nor shall we on this occasion labor to arrange proofs of this 



MUTUAL DUTIES OF PARENTS AND TEACHERS. 231 

position. It is a remark among teachers, as common as house- 
hold words, that "school-keeping might be a delightful employ- 
ment, if one could take his pupils entirely out of the reach of their 
parents." The experience of those who have had charge of acade- 
mies in the country, where the pupils chiefly were away from their 
own homes, goes to establish the same point; and any one, who has 
attentively watched the course of events in one of those impor- 
tant communities which we call a school district, cannot have 
failed to draw the conclusion to which we have come. We would 
not, however, advocate the removal of the young from their 
parents for the purposes of education, except in extreme cases. 
We believe that our Creator has wisely established the family 
relation, and that it is our duty to draw out and render available 
its uses, rather than by extinction of the relation to destroy its 
abuses. We believe, indeed, that the child can be best educated 
among those of his own kindred, provided parents and teachers 
can by any means be made to understand one another's relative 
duties and obligations. 

Between parties, who are so often brought into collision, it is 
highly desirable there should exist some well defined mutual 
understanding. In many of our public schools the usefulness of 
one teacher after another is effectually destroyed; the youth not 
only suffering from the interruption of their studies, but also 
from the angry looks and harsh words witnessed at home, the 
parents meantime working themselves up into the exercise of bad 
feeling, where, perhaps nothing is designed but good. There are 
often parents, who feel sufficiently the importance of education, 
whose impulses are sufficiently powerful, if only moved in the 
right direction, to carry them into the performance of every good 
word and work. They make, it may be, liberal appropriations 
for the support of their schools,— but after all, the atmosphere is 
unhealthy. One sun after another rises upon them, only to raise 
the vapor and the mildew,— and shorn of their beams and robbed 
of their warmth, they go down in clouds and tempests, w'hile the 
district over which they have passed is left in still greater dark- 
ness, and the chill and the gloom of a winter's midnight yet hang 



232 PAGE'S THEORY AND PRACTICE. 

over them, perhaps only to be again made more visible by the 
rising of another luckless luminary. 

But why is this? Why all this waste of strength, of money, 
and of talent? Why so often must the teacher on the one hand, 
and the parent on the other, row in opposite directions? Let us 
inquire into the causes of the difficulty, and then we may hope 
the better to adopt a prevention or devise a remedy. 

What, then, are some of the causes of misunderstanding 
between parents and teachers? 

1. Parents do not sufficiently feel the importance of schools. — 
After all that has been said in our halls of legislation, in our 
political assemblies, in oui* public journals, and in our pulpits, 
upon the importance to a free and independent people, of a 
good education, there are many, very many, who have no ade- 
quate notion of its value. This lack of appreciation will show 
itself in many ways, to make the duties of the teacher more 
arduous. One man keeps his son from the school on the slight- 
est occasion; another, by the same spirit, refuses to furnish the 
various facilities, which the teacher may deem necessary for the 
prosecution of study. Now while such is the state of feeling in 
the parent's mind, the business of instructing his child, who will 
most assuredly partake of his fathei*'s spirit, will be more 
arduous than the making of bricks and furnishing the straw 
under the taskmasters of the Egyptian monarch. 

2. A false standard of excellence and attainment for our 
schools in the minds of parents, is another source of much diffi- 
culty and inconvenience to the teacher. The standard of their 
own attainments and of the school of their boyhood is put, by 
many parents, for the youth and schools of the present day. 
They seem not to reflect that a child, in order to maintain his 
comparative standing in society now, must know more than if 
he had lived fifty years ago, — because the progress in education, 
without claiming much for the "march of intellect," having kept 
pace in some ratio with other things, the whole body of the 
people are more advanced. Having in view a standard so low, 
the parent grudgingly furnishes the books and apparatus, which 



MUTUAL DUTIES OF PARENTS AND TEACHERS. 233 

may be needed to carry his son beyond his own level, — and he 
sees no beauty or fitness in the plans and measures of the 
teacher, so unlike the instructor of his own early years. He has 
serious objection to all classification in the school, because, as he 
says, he studied "single-handed,"' — and he is unwilling his child 
should be compelled, by any such "machinery," to go beyond 
the limits prescribed in his own mind. 

3. A suspicious spirit on the part of the parents, is another 
cause of misunderstanding. So universally does this operate on 
the minds of parents — induced, perhaps, by some failure or 
deception in a former teacher — that, for some weeks, in many 
districts, they seem to stand on the opposite side, to watch for 
the appearance of some fault. It would seem to be their 
motto — " we will believe no good till we see it." The children, 
always ready imitators and quick of discernment, catch the same 
spirit, and watch for some imperfection, which they feel encour- 
aged to report at home as soon as they see it, or think they see 
it. Faults, then, and not excellencies, make the first impression 
both at school and at home; and that teacher, under such cir- 
cumstances, must be a wonderful man and wonderfully fortunate, 
if he can ever attain to a good degree of their confidence, — 
which, if gained, must be gained after long trial, patient effort, 
yet so as by fire. 

4. A disposition to dictate, is another cause of the diflSculty. 
In New England, men often have some adroitness in various 
kinds of business. The farmer, for instance, if he be a true 
Yankee, may at the same time be a carpenter, a wheelwright, a 
shoemaker, and a blacksmith — for all his own purposes. If he 
do not operate in all these departments, he feels perfectly at 
liberty to direct how the work shall be performed for him. So 
most parents feel disposed to give lessons to the schoolmaster. 
If they call a physician, he may administer to his patient either 
calomel or lobelia, as he chooses ; but the teacher must first hear 
their direction in his profession. And the most unfortunate part 
of it is, that the dictation usually comes to the teacher through 
the pupil, who, by the time he delivers his message, has pretty 



234 PAGE'S THEORY AND PRACTICE. 

thoroughly imbibed the spirit of it, — and what part of it might 
be yielded by the parent, is sure to be insisted on as a matter of 
right by the child. 

5. A want of personal acquaintance between the parties.— 
Teachers, in many of our schools, spend months, and in some 
instances years with youth, whose parents they have never 
known. The parents during this time, have probably formed 
their opinion of the teacher, perhaps have expressed it freely 
either for or against him, and yet, have never spoken a word 
with him, and very likely may not even know him by sight. 
They can understand but little of his character, of his temper, 
or of his interest in his school. All they can know of him is 
derived through their children,— a knowledge which, to say the 
most for it, may be right or it may be wrong. 

Let us not, however, be understood to place all the causes of 
these evils at the door of the parents. We say it with sorrow- 
teachers have too often rendered themselves unworthy of the con- 
fidence and co-operation of parents. It must be admitted, how^- 
ever humbling the fact, that the otfice of the teacher has not 
unfrequently been filled with the personification of indolence, 
selfishness and imbecility. Men have sometimes entered upon 
the business of teaching from no higher motive than their inca- 
pacity to gain a livelihood in any other way. Through the 
supineness of school committees, and the misdirected sympathy 
of some of their influential friends, there have been not a few men, 
who have gained their situations by the paper qualifications 
which they carried in their pocket-books, and who, so far as use- 
fulness in their schools was concerned, might as well have been 
themselves paper men. 

The regular teacher, too, may have his faults. He may have 
but little in his character which is attractive or conciliatory. He 
may be too self-sufficient, too pedantic, or too haughty. He 
may announce his plans without any apparent wish to explain 
them, should he be reasonably requested to do so. He may be 
an off-sided man. If the people among whom he resides put the 
wheel in motion and excite the electric fluid, he may refuse to 



MUTUAL DUTIES OF PARENTS AND TEACHERS. 235 

hold the conductor, and 8o no spark would be kindled. Should 
they bow in the street, he may " set his face like flint" and "let 
his course be right onward," and thus chill all their good feelings 
in the very bud, and seal up by a relentless frost all the fountains 
of mutual sociality. 

Where the foregoing causes exist they must always produce a 
most unhappy state of things ; and the teacher who attempts to 
go forwai'd while they operate, will most certainly " rue the day " 
when he first set his face upon school-keeping. 

It is desirable all should understand the means of avoiding 
these evils, if they do not exist, or of removing them where they 
have gained a place. 

In education, as in all other things, prevention is more valua- 
ble than cure. The teacher will, therefore, spare himself many 
pangs, and secure the foundation of much usefulness, if he can so 
conduct matters, as to prevent the existence of any cause of 
difficulty between himself and the parents of his pupils. This 
business of prevention lies partly with the teacher, and partly 
wuth the parents themselves. 

We are now prepared, in consideration of these mutual defi- 
ciencies, to enter more particularly into the subject. We shall, 
for the sake of arrangement, treat of the duties of each party 
separatel3", and shall commence with the 

DUTIES OF THE TEACHER. 

1. He should imbue himself with a feeling of the importance 
of his work. — If he would gain the confidence of his employers, 
he must be prepared to show to them evidence of a living interest 
in his profession. But this cannot be shown unless it be deeply 
felt. In contemplating his duty, the teacher should form elevated 
conceptions of his sphere of action, and he should aim at nothing 
less than such an ascendency over the minds of his pupils, as will 
enable him to govern, to instruct, and to elevate them as mortal 
beings, as these several acts should be done.* 



* The reader is referred to sections i,ii, iii and iv, of chapter xi,for wliat is 
here omitted. 



236 PAGE'S THEORY AND PRACTICE. 

He should study faithfully and feelingly the relations he sus- 
tains to his pupils and their friends ; he should carefully perform 
every known duty in its time and after its manner, according to 
the dictates of his own conscience. Let him do this, and he can 
be happy in his own mind. Yet, when he has done all he can do, 
the question of his success will depend very much upon the 
parents of the scholars. They must come forward and crown 
the work, or very much will, after all, be wanting. 

Let us, then, devote a few pages to the consideration of the 

DUTIES OF PARENTS. 

On entering this part of the subject, we feel an impulse to speak 
plainly and feelingly. We have had years of feeling on this sub- 
ject, and, if we have not always felt right, w^e certainly have, at 
times, felt intensely. It will be difficult to define all the duties 
of parents. It will be our object to speak of such as most 
strongly suggest themselves to our mind. 

1. Parents should reciprocate the attempts of the teacher 
toward a mutual understanding. — \t will discourage the most 
faithful instructor, if at the outset, he meets with coldness and 
unconcern. The parents should never forget, that the teacher is 
their appointed coadjutor for the time being, to educate their 
children, — and as they love their offspring and desire their ad- 
vantage, so they should be ready to encourage all the advances 
which he may make toward the better understanding of their 
wishes and intentions, and the explanation of his plans. 

2. Parents should candidly listen to the plans of the teacher, 
and, unless they are manifestly wrong, should do all in their 
power to aid him in the execution of them. — We say unless they 
are manifestly wrong. Many parents suppose, if a teacher's 
modes and plans are not the best, in their opinion the very best, 
they are under no obligation to help them forward. But we say, 
every teacher may not have the wisdom to devise abstractly the 
best plans (for all teachers are not alike), yet most likely such 
as he will devise, will be the best for him. He has taken much 
time, and after long solicitude and many desires to be useful, he 



MUTUAL DUTIES OF PARENTS AND TEACHERS. 237 

has fixed upon a course — one, which, under all the circumstances, 
may seem to bini the best. Now suppose this course should chance 
to strike the parents' minds unfavorably ; shall they at once aban- 
don the teacher, give up all hope of benefit from the school, and 
withdraw their co-operation? Is it not rather their duty, either 
to suggest a ''more excellent way," which they may ever do, if 
they have a right spirit, or to give their co-operation in carrying 
out his plans— such as they are? The teacher, be it remembered, 
is appointed to conduct the school for the time, and unless his 
services and his plans, however inferior they may be, are ren- 
dered useful, the youth are, for the time, to be the losers. Parents 
may be as particular as they please in the choice of their teacher, 
and in requiring the highest rate of qualifications ; but after they 
have appointed him their teacher, they cannot, without a breach 
of contract, withhold from him their co-operation. If they have 
been imposed upon — if the incumbent is found to be absolutely 
incompetent for his office, they may decently dismiss him, and 
employ another, — but to continue a teacher in office, in whom 
they have no confidence, and whom, they refuse to aid, is a breach 
of good faith; it is a violation of the axiom that "two wrongs 
can never make a right." 

As a general rule, we repeat it, the teacher's own plans will be 
found decidedly the best for him, — and it is no good policy for 
parents, upon slight causes, to attempt an obtrusive interfer- 
ence. The right of adopting his own measures, as a general 
thing, should be conceded to the teacher; and all parents will 
find their own interest promoted and their children's advance- 
ment accelerated, in cheerfully aiding him. 

3. They should thank full j listen to the teacher ^s faithful account 
of their children, even if that account be not a flattering one. — 
We have before said, that the teacher should be frank, always 
telling the parents the whole truth, and nothing but the truth. 
This must sometimes of itself, be an unpleasant duty. It is self- 
denying enough for the teacher to make an unfavorable state- 
ment demanded by his dutj^, under the best circumstances, — and 
the trial is peculiarly severe when the parent receives it with 



238 PAGE'S THEORY AND PRACTICE, 

expressions of displeasure, or perhaps, of undisguised reproach. 
Nothing should deter the teacher, however, from the faithful dis- 
charge of this duty, — but we do say, he has a just right to 
expect cordiality and gratitude on the part of the parent for his 
faithfulness, whether his tale be bright or dark, — and the good 
and wise parent will always exhibit them. 

4. Parents should visit the schools where their children attend. 
Without this, they can have no very correct idea of the state 
of things in the schoolroom. Common report concerning the 
affairs of a school, is not always correct. By visiting the school, 
parents can at once see, if the teacher is honest, the comparative 
standing of their children ; they will become more interested in 
the objects and business of the school, and, what will be of infin- 
ite worth both to teacher and pupils, it will convince them all, 
that the parents have some sense of the importance of the 'im- 
provement made there. The pupils will be quickened to diligence, 
and the teacher to activity and faithfulness, — and is not the rate 
of purchase very low, when the advantage is so great? 

5. Parents should promptly and cheerfully supply the required 
books and apparatus for the school. — The teacher cannot work 
without tools ; the parent ought not to expect it. If a parent has 
any doubt about the propriety of a call for a new book, he should 
at once see the teacher,— but never should he send an uncivil or 
angry message by the child. An interview of five minutes may 
put the matter peaceably at rest, and save both parties much 
unpleasant feeling. Besides, school books are now less expensive 
than formerly. The parent in most cases can better afford to buy 
a book, than to spend his time in talk about it. Often the pupil 
loses more by delay in one week, than the value of the book 
many times told, — for there is no estimating improvement by 
dollars and cents. We grant, the multiplication and frequent 
change of school books are a great and sore evil, — but this at 
least is not the fault of the instructor; and no good can possibly 
come of disputing a question with him, which in reality, has been 
settled already by the school committee. 

6. Parents should see that their children are decently clothed, 



MUTUAL DUTIES OF PARENTS AND TEACHERS. 239 

and clennly in their persons. — This duty belongs mainly to the 
mother,— and her character may very readily be seen, as reflected 
in the persons of her children. The teacher has a right to expect 
of the parents the faithful performance of this duty. He ought 
not to be insulted with filthiness, and surely he need not, so long 
as soft water falls in rich abundance from the heavens,— and a 
pair of scissors and a comb are possessed by every family. He 
can have no heart to come in contact with pupils, who are 
sometimes so sadly neglected in this jjarticular. This point, 
however, is so obvious, that we need not waste words upon it. 

7. Parents are bound to secure the constant attendance of 
their children.— This is no trifling article of their duty. Perhaps 
there is no one thing to be named, which contributes so largely to 
the perplexities of the teacher and to the injury of our public 
schools, as irregular attendance. Downright sickness of the 
child is a good excuse for absence from school,— and perhaps we 
may add, in some instances, illness in the family. But beyond these, 
it seems there can be no good reason for keeping a scholar from his 
school. It is heart-sickening to witness for what trifling causes 
many of the children are kept away from our schools. Fre- 
quently it happens, that some unimportant errand, as trifling — 
if we may be allowed to be specific— as the purchase of a cent's 
w^orth of yeast, is made the occasion of a half day's absence from 
school — an injury done to the child's mind, which cannot be esti- 
mated in dollars and cents. Who can compute the amount of 
idle habits of study, having their foundation in that indifference 
to education, which, for some trifling errand amounting, per- 
haps, to the value of a c7ime— oftener, however, to less than a 
cent, permits the child to be away from his class, and thus prac- 
tically teaches him to consider his school as a very cheap affair. 

Every school, if the teacher would lay out his strength to 
advantage, should, to a considerable extent, be classified. His 
mind, as far as practicable, must act upon masses of mind. But 
irregularity of attendance is most ruinous to classification. A 
scholar, by being absent one half the time, it may be demon- 
strated, is, to all the intents and purposes of the school, absent 



240 PAGE'S THEORY AND PRACTICE. 

all the time. One day he is absent, and of course, loses all 
that day's lessons; the next day he is present, but is still defi- 
cient in his lessons, because, as he says to his teacher,— "I was 
absent yesterday, and not knowing where to study, I have not 
studied at all." Again he is absent — again he is present; the 
same result follows, and at the week's end he has learned 
nothing as it should be learned. Such is the effect upon the 
pupil himself. 

But the difficulty is not yet half told. He is a member of the 
school — the teacher must consider him such; and as the parents 
of such pupils often make fair promises for the future, the teacher 
feels bound, if possible, to keep him along with his class. To 
effect this, the class must be often put back on his account, which 
operates as a severe discouragement to them. Sometimes the 
instructor is obliged to devote particular attention to this 
scholar singl}^, by which the other pupils are robbed of the pro- 
portion of his time which is their due, and they are obliged to 
suffer an injury the most of all unpleasant, — for when scholars, 
who are always at their post, have learned their lessons well, it 
is cruel in the last degree, that they should be deprived of the 
pleasure of showing their faithfulness — the pleasure of a good 
recitation. 

Nor is this all. The teacher— the unthought-of teacher— is not 
made of iron or brass. His patience being so frequently, so thought- 
lessly, and so unnecessarily taxed, and his best efforts being so ill 
requited, he may— unless he is superhuman, he most certainly must, 
relax his exertions. He will find it next to impossible for a series of 
weeks or months, after having labored faithfully without success, 
to maintain his interest and his efficiency under all the discourag- 
ing circumstances of the case. As soon as his spirits flag, the 
whole school will imperceptibly catch the feeling, and they all are 
the sufferers. This is not an extreme case; it is not a fancy pic- 
ture; it is not speculation. It is history ; and I am sorry to be 
obliged to add, it is the exact history of most of our public 
schools. 

Can any wonder, then, that we should earnestly urge, that 



MUTUAL DUTIES OF PARENTS AND TEACHERS. 241 

parents should co-operate with the teacher in this particular? 
And shall it ever be, that for some trifling "errand,"— (we have 
often wished the word were "expunged" from our language), 
which, by early rising, might as well be done long before school 
hours; or for some pretext originating in the imbecility or lack 
of forethought of our children's natural guardmns— must it 
ever be, that the teacher's life shall be a life of perplexity, and 
the design of our public school system be so far frustrated? 

What has been said of irregular attendance will apply with 
equal force to want of punctuality to the hour of opening the 
school. The reasons for tardiness, if possible, are often more 
futile than those for entire absences. The effects upon the school 
are nearly the same ; for the current proverb, "better late than 
never," will hardly hold in this case. He is allowed to be his own 
teacher of a most deleterious lesson. Let it never be forgotten, 
it is just as easy to be strictly punctual as otherwise; and the 
parent, who will not lay the foundation of a habit so valuable in 
the child, when it can be done without cost, deserves not the 
privilege of being a parent. He betrays his trust; he injures 
his own child. 

8. Parents should be slow in condemning the teacher for sup- 
posed faults.— This is a point on which many are very apt to act 
wrong. Too often is it the case, that a teacher is tried, con- 
demned and publicly executed, without even a hearing. Some 
troublesome, precocious youth, who has, it may be very justly, 
received some proportionate reward for his dark deeds, deter- 
mines on revenge. He immediately tells his story to any one 
who will hear it. If his parents are inconsiderate, and encourage 
him to go on, he is tempted to overreach the truth on the one 
hand, and to stop short of it on the other, till he succeeds in hav- 
ing the combustible materials around him lighted into a flame. 
Such a fire is seldom kindled without most severely scathing 
somebody; and it sometimes happens, that those most burned, 
are they who apply the match and fan the flame. 

The truth is, few parents are capable of judging at the first 
blush upon the merits of the case, which they have not witnessed. 

T. p.— 16 



242 PAGE'S THEORY AND PRACTICE. 

They have strong partialities in favor of the complainant ; and 
then they have but very inadequate views of the difficulties, the 
untold and untellable difficulties, with which the teacher must 
daily contend. 

We undertake to say, that parents often expect more of a 
teacher, than he can possibly accomplish. They expect him to 
advance their children in learning, without making the proper 
allowance for the difference of abilities which his pupils possess. 
Every parent wishes his son to be foremost in improvement, and 
he expects it, because he wishes it. At the same time he expects 
the school to be a perfect pattern of good order, because in his 
family, where, perhaps, he has but one child, he has never known 
any insurmountable outrage. He forgets, that probably fifty 
other parents are expecting for their children, as much as he for 
his,— and that the teacher is laboring in laudable ambition to do 
faithfully, all that can be expected of him, with some three or 
four scores of individuals, whose tempers and capacities and 
habits are as different as their countenances. 

In judging of the teacher's government, the parent commonly 
compares it with his own family discipline, — because the family is 
the only community with which he is acquainted, at all analo- 
gous to the school. He forgets, perhaps, his own recent fit of 
impatience, even among his little circle of some half a dozen ; and 
wonders at the unrestrained and unrestrainable temper of the 
schoolmaster, who, it is said, was not quite self-possessed in his 
school of a hundred. 

But the analogy does not hold between the family and the 
school. The parent has authority in the premises, from which, 
to all intents, there is no appeal; and his children know it. 
Moreover, he has the advantage of knowing perfectly, the dispo- 
sition of each subject of his authority, and may always proceed 
advisedly in the adoption of his discipline. He has ample leisure 
for the purpose; for, if his business be pressing during the day, 
he can postpone the whole matter till the calm and silent hour of 
evening, when, unexcited and undisturbed, he may pursue his 
steady purpose. With all these advantages it would be strange, 



MUTUAL DUTIES OF PARENTS AND TEACHERS. 243 

if a parent could not govern his own household well. The parent 
may well wonder at himself, if he have not good discipline. 

But the case is not thus with the teacher. His authority in 
these latter days, is somewhat questionable. He cannot, unless 
his discernment is supernatural, have a perfect knowledge of the 
disposition of each pupil, and hence he is, from the nature of the 
case, liable to misjudge in the adaptation of his means. He has 
no leisure. He must work all the time; for his reputation depends 
upon his success in teaching. He is expected to advance each 
pupil daily. He has not the time to adjust all his measures by 
deliberate reflection. He cannot always put off the case. His 
community probably may need the immediate check his punish- 
ment will give,— and if he should neglect to work the pump, the 
ship would probably sink, and bury him and his in the waves of 
Insufferable confusion. 

Consider well the life of the teacher. He must apply himself 
constantly, and often to numberless things at the same time. We 
have been told, I know, that the teacher ''should never do but one 
thingat the same time." But this is impossible. Two things he 
must always do at once ; he must govern and instruct. He can 
never do the latter without having his mind on the former. It is 
this double attention which makes his life a weary one. He might 
govern with comparative ease, if his duty ended there. The 
instruction would be dehghtful, if that could be pursued alone. 
But they must go together. With respect to the one, not a mis- 
take must pass unnoticed. Every error in declension or conjuga- 
tion, in orthography or calculation, in matter or manner, must 
be detected and set right;— and at the same time, the stolen 
whisper must be heard, the clandestine plaything must be cap- 
tured, the incipient plot must be discovered, the arch trick must 
be anticipated, the idler must be watched, the wayward reproved 
and set right, and the stubborn and the impudent— the coarse 
and the turbulent— must be subdued. All these things must go 
together; they cannot be separated. Then, in ordinary schools, 
unforeseen perplexities will arise. The boy has lost his book ; 
another has left his at home; another makes a clamorous com- 



244 PAGE'S THEORY AND PRACTICE. 

plaint of some injury done him by his next neighbor ; a fourth is 
too warm and opens a window; a fifth is too cold and imme- 
diately shuts it, or applies to the teacher for liberty to do so. 
Add to these the perplexities occasioned by late attendance and 
frequent absence to which w^e have before referred, and many 
other things literally ''too numerous to mention," and who can 
wonder that the teacher should sometimes be a little in doubt as 
to the best mode of procedure in his discipline? 

We name not these things to complain of our lot as a teacher. 
That after all is the profession of our choice. But we name 
them to show why the parent should be slow in condemning the 
teacher for supposed faults. It seems to us, if parents would but 
reflect, they would be exceedingly slow to decide against the 
instructor without a hearing, " as the manner of some is." 

9. When the teacher is known to do wrong, parents should 
possess a forgiving spirit.— It is a duty enjoined by the Great 
Teacher, that we should love our enemies, and that we should 
forgive men their trespasses as we hope to be forgiven. But how 
rarely is there any such thing as forgiveness for the faults of a 
teacher. ^^He has done wrong— turn him out,'^ is the gratui- 
tous decision of almost all who have any cause of complaint 
against the schoolmaster. Is he their enemy ? Then they should 
forgive. But he is not their enemy. In nine cases of ten, he has 
erred in the midst of well-meaning; he has erred because he was 
perplexed beyond the sustaining power of humanity. Surely then 
he deserves your compassion rather than your rebuke. Show to 
him the kind spirit, give to him the support he needs, second his 
reproofs, if need be, his punishments, give no countenance to the 
offending and offended pupil, no occasion for others to expect 
your sympathy if they offend and find the way of the trans- 
gressor is hard,— and you do that for the teacher, which he has a 
right, as your fellow-citizen and your fellow-christian, to expect 
from you, and that for the school which its best interest demands. 

We add but one thing more. Parents should give to teachers 
their sympathy. Some parents, ready to meet and defray the 
requisite expenses of their children's tuition, ready to co-operate 



MUTUAL DUTIES OF PARENTS AND TEACHERS. 245 

with the teacher in all laudable plans and aims for the welfare of 
his pupils are still lamentably deficient in this one Christian grace 
and virtue. They seem to have no conception that he wants like 
other men, that time which with its free use and unfettered enjoy- 
ment is also to him a blessed commodity; that confinement 
within the four walls of a schoolroom, month after month, does 
not necessarily leave him no tastes to gratify beyond. They 
seem not to realize, that the teacher has nerves that need relaxa- 
tion, languid pulses to be revived, and wasting strength to be 
renewed; and they can, and not unfrequently do, grudge the 
limited vacations, which are absolutely necessary to recruit his 
crippled energies and exhausted body. We can repeat it, we claim 
thesympath3^,the spontaneous grateful sympathy of the parents, 
sympathy for the perplexities, the toils, the nameless trials that 
overtask the mind, unnerve the frame, and wear down the 
strength of the studious, faithful, devoted teacher. 

It must be admitted, that many parents estimate the services 
of the schoolmaster, in very much the same way, that they esti- 
mate the services of the day laborer in their employ. The man 
of business pays the clerk in his counting-room, and the cartman 
on his wharf, and the term bill of his child's teacher, and in each 
case feels, in his own mind, alike absolved from all further obliga- 
tion. Obligation! Obligation from a parent toward a teacher; 
we have heard the word sneered at, the idea treated with con- 
tempt. But as there is no estimating the amount of good or 
evil influence upon the ductile mind of a child, extending as it 
does through his boyhood, felt in his riper years, operating 
unseen upon the principles and habits of all after-life, running 
into eternity even — so there can be no estimating, in mere dol- 
lars and cents, the unspeakable value of a good teacher's serv- 
ices; and no pecuniary emolument can ever cancel the obliga- 
tion, unfelt and unacknowledged though it be, which the parent 
comes under to the teacher, while he sees the germs of fair prom- 
ise in his boy, shooting into active usefulness as that boy becomes 
the man. Yes, the parent witnesses the expansion of the bud, 
the beautifying of the flower; but the genial influences, which 



246 PAGE'S THEORY AND PRACTICE. 

operate upon these as the gentle dew and the blessed sunshine of 
heaven, are wholly forgotten and overlooked. A hand is atwork 
behind the scenes, and the light of eternity can only reveal to the 
astonished parent, that the sun, the shade, the imperceptible dew 
on the mind of his child were to be found in the unobtrusive work- 
ings, the judicious, persevering, faithful training of the neglected 
teacher. 

There is something cheering and animating in the cordiality of 
soul, which it is in the parents' power to exercise toward the in- 
structor. If they have not the time for the visitation of the 
school, or the supposed qualifications for the examination of 
their children in their studies, they certainly have it in their 
power to do much to make the teacher's life a pleasanter one; 
they can give to him some token of a kindly interest in his suc- 
cess, and of a willingness to cheer him along the toilsome way. 
And let the teacher see that his labors are appreciated, his duties 
and difficulties properly estimated, his plans cordially acquiesced 
in and promoted, his acts candidly judged, his faults (and it 
will be very wonderful after all, if he have not many of these), 
fairly considered and heartily overlooked — and he would be an 
ungrateful, soulless piece of humanity, who would not be willing 
to devote his strength to the last remnant of energy, to requite 
the confidence, and answer the just expectations of those for 
whom he labors. 

Let parents give their sympathy and co-operation to the 
teachers of their children, and the profession would soon be filled 
with devoted and talented men, who would be wilhng to live and 
die in their work ; and when from their last pillow they should 
cast back a lingering look to the scene of their labors, the 
roses would amply conceal the sharpest thorns. 



CHAPTER XV. 

MISCELLANEOUS SUGGESTIONS. 

On looking over the notes which I have at various times made 
of my own experience and observation, during twenty years of 
practical teaching, I find there are several thoughts which maybe 
of some service to the young teacher, and which have not been 
introduced under any of the general topics of this volume. 
I have therefore thought best to introduce a special chapter, with 
the above title, where I might lawfully bring together, without 
much regard to method, such varied hints as may convey to some 
reader a useful lesson. Some of these hints will refer to faults 
which should be carefully avoided, while others will point out 
some duties to be performed. 

SECTION I.— THINGS TO BE AVOIDED. 

1. Guard against prejudice on entering a school.— It is not 
always safe to rely upon first impressions as to character. At 
the opening of a school, perhaps fifty individuals for the first 
time are brought before the teacher. Some of them are from 
humble life, and perhaps bear upon them the marks of parental 
neglecfc. Their persons and their clothing may present nothing 
to attract and gratify the eye of a stranger. Little accustomed 
to society, they exhibit an awkward bashfulness, or an imperti- 
nent forwardness, in their manner. Contrasted with these, others 
appear who have been the children of indulgence, and who have 
seen much more of the world. A more expensive garb attracts 
the eye; a more easy and familiar address, conforming to the 
artificial modes of society, is very likely to win the heart. The 
teacher is very prone to find his feelings committed in favor of the 
latter class, and against the former. But this is all wrong. A 
judgment thus hastily formed is extremely hazardous, — as a few 

(247) 



248 PAGE'S THEORY AND PRACTICE. 

days' acquaintance will usually show. The child of blunt or shy 
demeanor often has the truest heart,— a heart whose sentiments 
go out by the shortest course, — a heart that has never learned 
the artificial forms of the world, because it has never felt the need 
of them. And how unjust to the child is a prejudice founded on 
the circumstance of dress! Must the inability or neglect of his 
parent be doubly visited on him ? Is it not enough that he daily 
feels the inward mortification of a contrast with his more favored 
school-fellows? Must he be painfully reminded of it by discover- 
ing that his teacher repels him on that account, and bestows his 
kindliest smiles upon those who are <'the brightest and best 
clad?" 

And yet such unjust prejudice is common; wrong and unfeeling 
as it isj it is too common. A fine dress, and a clean face, and a 
graceful manner, I know are attractive; but the teacher has to 
do with the mind and the heart ;— and he should never be deterred 
by anything exterior, from making a diligent and patient search 
for good qualities which have their home behind the surface,— 
and he should ever possess a smile as cordial and a tone as 
parental for the neglected child of poverty and ignorance, as for 
the more favored son of wealth and ease. 

2. Do not allow your pupils to direct their own studies.— Wliat- 
ever their age may be, they are seldom capable of doing this. It 
is the aim of the young to get over a long course of study. They 
are usually pleased to belong to higher classes before they have 
mastered the branches taught in the lower. If children are suf- 
fered to direct their own studies, they usually make themselves 
very poor scholars. This is the bane of many of our select 
schools and academies, where the teacher yields this right in 
order to secure pupils and a salary. But no one, not even the 
parent, is as competent as the teacher ought to be, to direct in 
this matter. He has the best opportunity daily to fathom the 
pupil's attainments, and to understand his deficiencies. He may 
claim the right to direct. In case the pupil withstands his deci- 
sion, the teacher should appeal to the parent, and endeavor there 
to sustain his point, a thing generally within his power, if indeed 



MISCELLANEOUS SUGGESTIONS. 249 

he is right. If the parent too is obstinate, and firmly insists upon 
the wrong course, the teacher may perhaps submit, though he 
cannot submit without the consciousness that his province has 
been invaded. 

It is too frequently the case that the teacher at the first yields 
all this ground voluntarily, by asking the children what they 
wish to study. When he has once made them a party in this 
question, he need not wonder if they claim to be heard. This he 
should not do. He should first be sure that he is qualified to 
direct aright, and then, as a matter of course, proceed to do it, 
just as the physician would prescribe for the physical malady of 
such a child. The latter is not more the rightful duty of the 
physician, than the former is of the school teacher. Neither has 
the power to enforce his prescription against the parents' con- 
sent,— but that consent may be taken for granted by both, till 
informed that it is withheld. 

I may here remark that in all my intercourse with the young, 
wiiether in the common or the higher school, I have found no 
greater evil than that of proceeding to the more difficult branches 
before the elementary studies have been mastered. It is no 
uncommon thing to find those who have "attended" to the 
higher mathematics — algebra, geometry, and the like — whose 
reading and waiting are wretched in the extreme, and whose 
spelling is absolutely intolerable! They have been pursuing 
quadratics, but are unable to explain why they "carry one for 
every ten;" they have wandered among the stars in search of 
other worlds, by the science of astronomy, without knowing the 
most simple points in the geography of our own; they have 
studied logarithms and infinite series, but cannot be safely 
trusted to add a column of figures, or to compute the simple 
interest upon a common note! In short, they have studied 
everything, except what is most useful to be known in practical 
life, and have really learned— nothing! 

Now if this evil— grievous and extensive as it is at present — is 
destined ever to be abated, it is to be accomplished by the instru- 
mentality of the teacher, acting, in his appropriate sphere, in the 



250 PAGE'S THEORY AND PRACTICE. 

capacity of a director as to the course of study for the young. 
He must not be a man who can merely teach,\)\xt one who under- 
stands the high import of a true education, and knows how to 
prescribe the order of its progress ; one, in short, who will never 
attempt to erect a showy superstructure upon an insufficient 
foundation. 

3. Do not attempt to teach too many things. — Theve is a 
tendency at present to introduce too many things into all our 
schools. Nothing is more common than to hear our public lec- 
turers declare, as they become a little enthusiastic in any given 
department, that "this branch should at once be made a study 
in our common schools." This is heard of almost the whole 
round of the natural sciences. But it seems to me to be dictated 
by overwrought enthusiasm. Everything cannot he well taught 
in our schools; nor should too much be attempted. It is the 
province of our schools — particularly our common schools— to 
afford thorough instruction in a few things, and to awaken a 
desire for more extended attainment. The instruction given 
should, as far as possible, be complete in itself, — while it should 
afford the means of making further advancement; but that 
instruction which, being merely superficial, neither itself informs 
the mind nor imparts the desire and the means of future self- 
improvement, is worse than useless ; it is positively injurious. A 
few branches thoroughly possessed are worth more than a thou- 
sand merely glanced at, — and the idea of changing our common 
schools to universities, where our children, before they pass from 
the years of their babyhood, are to grasp the whole range of the 
sciences, is one of the most preposterous that has grown up even 
in this age of follies. The teacher, then, should not undertake too 
much ; he should be sure that he can accomplish what he under- 
takes. The mark he makes upon the young should be no 
uncertain sign. 

4. Never attend to extraneous business in school hours.— This 
is a common fault. Many teachers neglect their duties in school 
to write letters, or transact such other business as should be done 
at home. This is always wrong. There is no time for it in any 



MISCELLANEOUS SUGGESTIONS. 251 

school; for a diligent teacher can always find full employment 
even with a small number. Besides, he has engaged to devote 
himself to the school; and any departure from this is a violation 
of his contract. The children will so view it, and thus lose much 
of their respect for the teacher. Moreover, if they see him neglect 
his business for some other, they will be very likely to neglect 
theirs, and thus disorder will be introduced. I hold that the 
teacher is bound to devote every moment of school hours to 
active labor for the school. 

5. Avoid making excuses to visitors for the defects of jour 
school. — Franklin, I think, said that "a man who is good for 
making excuses is good for nothing else." I have often thought 
of this as I have visited the schools of persons given to this fail- 
ing. It is sometimes quite amusing to hear such a teacher keep 
up a sort of running apology for the various pupils. A class is 
called to read. The teacher remarks, "This class have but just 
commenced reading in this book." Stephen finishes the first 
paragraph, and the teacher adds, "Stephen has not attended 
school very regularly lately." William reads the second. "This 
boy," says the teacher, " was very backward when I came here— 
he has but just joined this class." Charles executes the third. 
"That boy has an impediment in his speech." Reuben follows. 
" It is almost impossible to make a good reader of Reuben; he 
never seems to pay the least attention. I have bestowed unwear- 
ied pains upon him.'* Mary takes her turn. " This girl has lost 
her book, and her father refuses to buy her another." Mary here 
blushes to the eyes, — for though she could bear his reproof, she 
still has some sense of family pride; she bursts into tears, while 
Martha reads the next paragraph. "I have tried all along," 
says the teacher, "to make this girl raise her voice, but still she 
will almost stifie her words." Martha looks dejected, and the 
next in order makes an attempt. 

Now the teacher in all this has no malicious design to wound 
the feelings of every child in the class,— and yet he as effectually 
accomplishes that result as if he had premeditated it. Every 
scholar is interested to read as well as possible in the presence of 



252 PAGE'S THEORY AND PRACTICE. 

strangers ; everyone makes the effort to do so ; yet everyone is 
practically pronounced to have failed. The visitors pity the poor 
pupils for the pain they are made thus needlessly to suffer, and 
they pity also the weakness of the poor teacher, whose love of 
approbation has so blinded his own perception that he is regard- 
less of the feelings of others, and thinks of nothing but his own. 

This over-anxiety for the good opinion of others shows itself 
in a still less amiable light, when the teacher frequently makes 
unfavorable allusions to his predecessor. "When 7 came Aere," 
says the teacher significantly, ''I found them all poor readers." 
Or, if a little disorder occurs in school, he takes care to add, "I 
found the school in perfect confusion," — or, " The former teacher, 
as near as I can learn, used to allow the children to talk and 
play as much as they pleased." Now, whatever view w^e take of 
such a course, it is impossible to pronounce it anything better 
than despicable meanness. For if the charge is true, it is by no 
means magnanimous to publish the faults of another ; and if it is 
untrue in whole or in part, as most likely it is, none but a con- 
temptible person would magnif}^ another's failings to mitigate 
his own. 

There is still another w-ay in which this love of personal 
applause exhibits itself. I have seen teachers call upon their 
brightest scholars to recite, and then ask them to tell their age, 
in order to remind the visitor that they were very young to do so 
well; and then insinuate that their older pupils could of course do 
much better. 

All these arts, however, recoil upon the teacher who uses them. 
A visitor of any discernment sees through them at once, and 
immediately suspects the teacher of conscious incompetency or 
willful deception. The pupils lose their respect for a man whom 
they all perceive to be acting a dishonorable part. I repeat, then, 
never attempt to cover the defects of your schools by making 
ridiculous excuses. 

6. Never compare one child with another. — It is a poor w^ay of 
stimulating a dull pupil to compare him with a better scholar. 
It is the direct way to engender hatred in the mind of the one, 



MISCELLANEOUS SUGGESTIONS. 253 

and the most consummate self-complacency in the other. Not 
one child in a thousand can be publicly held up to the school as a 
pattern of excellence, without becoming excessively vain ; at the 
same time, all the other scholars will be more or less excited to 
envy. Such a course is always unsafe; almost always injurious. 

7. Avoid wounding the sensibilities of a, dull child. — There will 
always be those in every school who are slow to comprehend. 
After their classmates have grasped an idea during the teacher's 
explanation, they still have the vacant stare, the unintelligent 
expression. This may be so after a second or a third explana- 
tion. The teacher is now strongly tempted to indulge in expres- 
sions of impatience, if not of opprobrium. This temptation he 
should resist. Such children are to be pitied for their dullness, but 
never to be censured for it. It is an unfeeling thing to sting the 
soul that is already benighted. He should cheer and encourage 
such a slow mind to greater effort, by the sunshine of kind looks, 
and the warm breath of sympathy, rather than freeze up the 
feeble current of vivacity which yet remains there by a forbidding 
frown or a blast of reproach. A dull child is almost always 
affectionate; and it is through the medium of kindness and 
patience that such a one is most effectually stimulated. 

8. Never lose your patience when parents unreasonably inter- 
fere with your plans.— It must be expected that some of the 
parents will wish to dictate to the teacher what course he shall 
pursue, at least in relation to their own children. This will some- 
times bring them to the schoolroom, perhaps in a tone of com- 
plaint, to set the teacher right. Whenever a parent thus steps 
beyond the bounds of propriety, the teacher should never lose 
his self-possession. He should always speak the language of 
courtesy, in frankness, but in firmness. He should reason with 
the parent, and if possible convince him,— but he should never 
insult or abuse him. It may be well to propose to see him 
at his own house, in order to talk over the matter more at his 
leisure. I recollect once a parent sent a hasty refusal to purchase 
a necessary book for his son,— a refusal clothed in no very respectful 
language. I gave the lad a courteous note directed to his father. 



254 PAGE'S THEORY AND PRACTICE. 

in which I intimated my desire to have an interview with him at 
his house at such time as he might appoint. In half an hour the 
boy came bounding back with the desired book, informing me 
that his father said, "he guessed he might as well get the book, 
and have done with it." My intercourse with that parent was 
ever afterwards of the most pleasant kind. A supercilious parent 
can never gain an advantage over a teacher, unless he can first 
provoke him to impatience or anger. As long as the teacher 
is perfectly self-possessed he is impregnable. 

9. Never make the study of the Bible a punishment.— I have 
known a teacher to assign sundry passages of the Bible, condem- 
natory of a particular sin, to be committed to memory as a pun- 
ishment. I have also known the idle scholar to be detained after 
school to study passages of Scripture, because he had failed to 
learn his other lessons in due time. I believe this to be bad policy, 
as well as doubtful religion. The lessons that a child thus learns, 
are always connected in his mind with unpleasant associations. 
His heart is not made better by truths thus learned. The Bible 
indeed should be studied by the young, but they should be 
attracted to it by the spirit of love, rather than driven to it by 
the spirit of vindictiveness. They who suppose that children can 
be made to love the Bible by being thus driA^en to the study of 
it, have sadly mistaken the human heart. 

10. Ride no '^hobbies^^ in teaching. — Almost every man, in 
whatever vocation, has some hobby, some '^ one idea,^' which he 
pushes forward on all occasions, no matter what may be the con- 
sequences. It is not strange that it is often thus with the teacher. 
If the teacher has any independence of mind, any originality, he 
will at some period in his life naturally incline to try some experi- 
ments in teaching. Partly on account of the novelty of the plan, 
and partly on account of the teacher's interest in the success of 
his own measure, he finds it works well in the class where it was 
first tried ; and he rejoices that he has made a discovery. Teach- 
ing now possesses a new interest for him, and he very likely 
becomes enthusiastic. He applies his new measure to other 
classes, and loudly recommends it to other teachers. For a time 



MISCELLANEOUS SUGGESTIONS. 255 

it succeeds, and it becomes his hobbr. Whenever a stranger 
visits his school, he shows off his new measure. Whenever he 
attends a teachers' meeting, he describes it, and perhaps presents 
a class of his pupils to verify its excellency. He abandons his old 
and long-tried plans, and persists in the new one. By and by the 
novelty has worn away and his pupils become dull under its 
operation, and reason suggests that a return to the former 
methods woald be advisable. Still, because it is his invention, he 
persists. Others try the experiment. Some succeed; some fail. 
Some of them by a public speech commit themselves to it, and 
then persist in it to preserve their consistency. In this way a 
great many objectionable modes of teaching have gained cur- 
rency and still hold their sway in many of our schools. 

Among these I might mention concert recitation and oral 
instruction when made a substitute for study. Of the origin and 
tendency of the former I have spoken more at length in the 
chapter on "Conducting Recitations." Of the latter a word or 
two may be said in this place. 

It was found years ago, in the earlier attempts to teach the 
blind, that they made very rapid strides in acquiring knowledge 
through the sole medium of oral instruction. As might have 
been foreseen, they became intensely interested in hearing about 
things which had surrounded them all their days, but which they 
had never seen. Shut in as they were from the privilege of sight, 
there was nothing to distract their attention from whatever was 
communicated to them through the sense of hearing; and as 
they had been blind from their birth, this discipline of attention 
had been going on from infancy. Under these circumstances their 
progress in knowledge by mere oral teaching was astonishing. 
This was all well. But soon some one conceived the idea of sub- 
stituting oral instruction for study among seeing children. 
Immediately there was an oral mania. Infant schools grew up 
in every village,— infant school manuals were prepared, filled 
with scientiSc baby-talk, for the use of the worthy dames who 
were to drive the hobby, and the nineteenth century bade fair to 
do more towards lighting up the fires of science than all time 



256 PAGE'S THEORY AND PRACTICE. 

before had accomplished ! It was truly wonderful for a time to 
listen to the learned volubility of these same infant schools. 
The wonders of astronomy, chemistry, botany, and zoology with 
the terms of Cuvier's classification, and a thousand other things, 
were all detailed with astonishing familiarity by pupils under five 
years of age ! Some eminent teachers sagely took the hint, and 
adopted the oral system with their older classes. The sciences 
were taught by lectures. The pupils of this happy day had noth- 
ing to do but to sit and receive. To be sure sometimes they 
would become inattentive, and it would be discovered by their 
teachers that they did not retain quite all that was told to them. 
This, however, was no fault of the system, it was urged; the sys- 
tem was well enough, but unfortunately the pupils had eyes, and 
their attention was frequently diverted by the unlucky use of 
these worthless organs. A royal road, sure enough, was found 
to the temple of science, too long beyond mortal reach by reason 
of the rugged footpath over which the student was compelled to 
climb. Happy, glorious day! No more must toil and thought 
be the price of success ! No more must the midnight oil be con- 
sumed, and the brain be puzzled, in search of the wisdom of ages! 
No more must the eyes be pained — (they are hereafter to be con- 
sidered encumbrances)— in searching the classic page; the ear is 
to be the easy inlet to the soul! 

Such was the hobby oi 1829 to 1831 in our own country. Dur- 
ing sixteen years past, those babes of the infant schools have 
grown into " young men and maidens," in no way distinguished, 
after all, unless they have since achieved distinction by actual 
study. The pupils of those higher schools have obtained what- 
ever they now value in their education, mainly by the use of their 
eyes, notwithstanding at one time their worthy guides would 
have almost deemed it a blessing to have had their eyes put out. 
It has been found that God was indeed wise in the bestowment of 
sight,— and some at least have acknowledged that a method that 
is well suited to the instruction of those who are blind, because it 
is the only possible one for them, may not be the best for those 
who can see. At the present time the sentiment begins to pre- 



MISCELLANEOUS SUGGESTIONS. 257 

vail, that oral instruction can never supply the place of study; 
that the lecturing or "pouring-in process," cannot long secure 
the attention ; that the mind by merely receiving, gains no vigor 
of its own; and that scholars must be made, if made at all, 
mainly by their own exertions in the use of books. 

It would be easy to mention other examples of hobbies which 
have been ridden by teachers very much to the injury of their 
schools. Those already given may, however, suffice for the pur- 
pose of illustration. Let it be remembered, then, that no one 
method of instruction comprises all the excellencies and avoids all 
the defects of good teaching; and that he is the wisest teacher 
who introduces a judicious variety into his modes of instruction, 
profiting by the suggestions of others, but relying mainly upon 
his own careful observation, eschewing all "patent methods,'* 
and never losing his common sense. 

Under the head of hobbies, I may add one other remark. 
Many teachers have some favorite branch of study, in which, 
because they excel, they take special delight. One man is a good 
mathematician, another an expert accountant, a third a skillful 
grammarian. Now the danger is, that the favorite branch of 
study may become the hobby,— and that the other branches will 
be neglected. This is indeed not infrequently the case. 

Again, some teachers are more interested in the higher branches 
generally, because the^^ were the last pursued in their college 
course, or for some other reason. They therefore neglect the lower 
studies, to the great detriment of the youth under their charge. 
Against all such partial views the teacher should take great 
pains to guard himself. He may fall unconsciously and almost 
imperceptibly into some of these errors. Let me add the caution, 
then, — never allow your partiality for one study, or a class of 
studies, to divert your attention from all those other branches 
which are necessary to constitute a good education. 

SECTION II. —THINGS TO BE PERFORMED. 

I. Convince your scholars by your conduct that you are their 
friend.— It is all-important that you should gain complete ascend- 

T. p.— 17 



258 PAGE'S THEORY AND PRACTICE. 

ancy over the minds of your pupils. In no way is this point so 
successfully gained as by leading them to feel that you are their 
true friend. When they feel this, all their sentiments of gen- 
erosity, gratitude, and love, conspire to lead them to render 
cheerful obedience to your wishes. Government then becomes 
easy; instruction is no longer irksome; and you can most cor- 
dially respond to the poet, in that beautiful sentiment too seldom 
fully realized : — 

"Delightful task! to rear the tender thought, 
And teach the young idea how to shoot, 
To pour the fresh instruction o'er the mind. 
To breathe the enhvening spirit, and to fix 
The generous purpose in the glowing breast." 

But effectually to convince them that you are thus their friend, 
is not the work of a moment. Words alone can never do it. 
You may make professions of interest in them, but it is all to no 
purpose. Your actions, your looks, your whole spirit must show 
it. In order thus to exhibit it, you must feel a deep, an all-per- 
vading interest in the welfare of every child. You must love jour 
profession, and you must love— sincerely love— those whom you 
are called to teach. If you do not love the work of teaching, and 
cannot bring yourself to love the children of your charge, you 
may not expect success. It was long ago declared that 

"Love only is the loan for love," — 

and this is specially true with the love of children. Their souls 
spontaneously go out after those who love them. Strive, then, 
to gain this point with them, not by empty pretensions, always 
quickly read and as quickly despised by the young; but by that 
full, frank, cordial expression of kindness in your manner 
towards them, which, being based upon deep principle in yourself, 
is sure at once to win their affection, and their ready compliance 
w4th all your reasonable requisitions. 

II. Take special care that the schoolhouse and its appendages 
are kept in good order.— Thm is a part of every teacher's duty. 
He should have an eye that is constantly on the alert to perceive 



MISCELLANEOUS SUGGESTIONS. 259 

the smallest beginnings of injury to any part of the premises. 
It is often painful to see a new schoolhouse, that has with much 
care and expense been put in perfect order, very soon cut and 
otherwise disfigured by the pupils,— the glass broken, the ceiling 
soiled, the desks and floors stained with ink, and everything 
bearing the marks of youthful destructiveness. The teacher 
should be held accountable for such results, for he can by proper 
vigilance prevent them. 

Some of his first lessons to his pupils should be upon the sub- 
ject of practical neatness, in regard to everything that pertains 
to the school. They should be impressed with the belief that he 
holds neatness as a cardinal virtue. Daily should he watch to 
discover the first violation of propriety upon the premises. This 
first violation should be promptly met. There is great wisdom 
in the adage which enjoins us to " resist the beginnings.^' 

So, too, he should exercise an oversight of the books belonging 
to the pupils. Many books are speedily destroyed by children for 
the want of a little care of the teacher, — probably more than are 
worn out by use. He should also occasionally inspect the desks, 
with a view to promote a commendable neatness there. The 
teacher has an undoubted right to inspect any part of the prem- 
ises, — but by a little adroitness he can interest the children in 
a reform of this kind, and then they will desire that he should 
witness their carefulness. 

I may add further, that the children should not only be taught 
to respect the schoolhouse and its appendages, but they should 
be taught to regard the sacredness of all property either public 
or private. The neighboring garden or orchard should be held 
to be inviolable. The teacher may not have the authority to 
compel compliance with his direction or advice beyond school 
hours, but he should endeavor to exercise a moral influence in 
the school which will be more powerful even than compulsion. 
So in regard to public buildings, such as churches and court- 
houses; and all public grounds, as parks, commons, and ceme- 
teries,— the teacher should inculcate not only the duty to abstain 
from injuring them, but a commendable desire to see them im- 



260 PAGE'S THEORY AND PRACTICE. 

proved and beautified. In America, it is remarked by foreigners, 
there is a strange tendency to destructiveness. In our public 
buildings, the walls are usually disfigured bynames and drawings, 
and even our cemeteries do not escape the violence of the knives 
of visitors, the trees being cut and marked with names, and the 
flowers plucked off and carried away. It is to be hoped that our 
teachers will so exercise a reforming influence, that the next gen- 
eration shall exercise a higher principle as well as a better taste 
in all these matters, which, small as they are, make up no mean 
part of the manners and morals of a people. 

III. When scholars do wrong, it is sometimes best to with- 
hold immediate reproof, but to describe a similar case in general 
instruction. — This is one of the most effectual modes of curing 
the evil in the wrong-doer himself. It, moreover, gives the 
teacher a valuable text for a lesson on morals before the whole 
school. Care should generally be taken not to lead the school to 
suspect the individual in your mind, while at the same time the 
parable should so fit the case as to preclude the necessity of say- 
ing to the offender, as Nathan did to David: "Thou art the 
man." 

A case will illustrate this. I recollect once to have found, 
among a large number of compositions presented by a class, 
one that I knew to have been copied. No notice was taken of it 
at the time; but some days afterwards a ca,S'e was described to 
the class, resembling the one that had actually occurred. After 
exciting considerable interest in the case, they were told that 
such a thing had happened among their own number; that I 
did not choose to expose the individual; but, if any of them 
thought it would be honorable for them to confess such an 
offense to me in case they had committed it, they might seek a 
private opportunity to do so. In less than twenty-four hours no 
less than four made such a confession, detailing freely the extent 
and the circumstances of their offending. In this way four were 
reformed, where by direct reproof only one could have been 
reached. It was a frank, not a forced confession ; and I was thus 
easily made to know the extent of this sin in the school. By this 



MISCELLANEOUS SUGGESTIONS. 261 

simple expedient, I have reason to believe, plagiarism was effect- 
ually eradicated for that term at least, in the whole class, and 
that too without the loss of any pupil's good will. 

It is generally wiser to endeavor to reach the evil in its whole 
extent, than to expend one's strength upon a single instance of 
wrong-doing. The conscience of the whole school may sometimes 
be profitably aroused, while the partic-ular individual is quite as 
effectively corrected as he would be by a direct reproof. 

IV. Be accurate.— This is necessary in order to secure the 
respect of your pupils. What the teacher professes to know he 
should be sure of. Approximations to the truth are not enough 
to satisfy the young mind. Whenever a teacher makes a blunder 
by stating what is not true in regard to any fact or principle in 
science, any event in history, or any item of statistics, he lowers 
himself very much in the estimation of all those who are capable 
9f detecting his error. If he does not know, he may frankl^^ say 
so, and incur no just censure, provided the point be one about 
which he has not had the opportunity to gain the requisite 
Information. But when he attempts to speak with the authority 
of a teacher, he "should know that whereof he affirms." "The 
character of the teacher," says Professor Olmsted, "is sullied by 
frequent mistakes, like that of a bookkeeper or banker. It is 
surprising to see how soon even the youngest learner will lose his 
confidence and respect for his teacher, when he has detected in 
him occasional mistakes. At every such discovery he rises in his 
own estimation, and the teacher proportionally^ sinks. The very 
character of the pupil is injured by such an incident. He rapidly 
loses the docility and modesty so essential to the scholar, and 
becomes uplifted with pride and self-importance." The super- 
ciliousness thus induced becomes a sore vexation to the teacher. 
He finds that his pupils are watching for his halting, — and he fre- 
quently fails, from this very circumstance, to do as well as he 
might. I know of no more pitiable condition on earth than that 
of a teacher, who is attempting to teach what he does not fully 
understand, while he is conscious that his pupils doubt his ability, 
from a frequent detection of his mistakes. 



262 PAGE'S THEORY AND PRACTICE. 

V. Cultivate a pleasant countenance.— Frowns and scowls 
always sit with ill grace upon the teacher's brow. I know that 
the trials and perplexities incident to his daily life are eminently 
fitted "to chafe his mood'' and to provoke his impatience. I 
know, too, that protra^cted confinement from the pure air and the 
bright sunlight, will almost necessarily render the nervous system 
morbidly sensitive, and the temper of course extremely irritable. 
The outward exponent of all this is a dejected, and perhaps an 
angry, countenance. The eyebrows are drawn up so that the fore- 
head is deeply and prematurely furrowed, while the angles of the 
mouth are suffered to drop downward as if in token of utter 
despair. By and by the roguishness of some unlucky urchin dis- 
turbs the current of his thoughts,— and suddenly the brow is firmly 
knitted with transverse channels, the nostrils are distended, the 
jaws are firmly closed, the lips are compressed, the cheeks are 
flushed, and the eyes almost emit sparks from the pent-up fire 
within him. For the next half-hour he frowns on all about him. 
The children at first are awed by such a threatening aspect,— but 
soon they become accustomed to it, and the terrible very natur- 
ally gives place to the ridiculous. 

No man has a moral right to render those uncomfortable who 
surround him, by habitually covering his face with the looks of 
discontent and moroseness. It is peculiarly wrong for the teacher 
to do it. It is for him to present an example of self-government 
under all circumstances, so that he can consistently enforce the 
duty of self-control upon the young. It is for him to show him- 
self a man of principle, of benevolence, of cheerful devotion to his 
duty, however full of trials that duty may be ; and in no way can 
he do this more effectually than by an amiable and engaging 
countenance. A peevish, frow^ning teacher is very likely to pro- 
duce petulance and sullenness in his pupils; while a cordial smile, 
like the genial beam of the spring-day sun, not only sheds a wel- 
come light on all around, but it imparts a blessed heat, which 
penetrates the frigidity of the heart, dissipates the cheerless mists 
that hover there, and warms the generous affections into life and 
beauty. 



MISCELLANEOUS SUGGESTIONS. 263 

We are so constituted that the inward and the outward sym- 
patTiize with each other. Solomon says, " a merry heart maketh 
a cheerful countenance," — and I may venture to add, and with 
almost as much truth, a cheerful countenance maketh a merry 
heart. An honest attempt to bless others with the sight of a 
countenance that is expressive of content and patience, is an act 
so praiseworthy in itself, that it will never go unrewarded. The 
gratifying response which such a countenance is sure to call forth 
from others, brings with it a rich revenue of inward enjoyment. 
He, therefore, who habitually bears about with him a sad or an 
angry countenance, while he constantly impairs the happiness of 
others, lacks at the same time an important instrumentality for 
securing his own. 

But the question will arise,— can a man gain such ascendency 
over himself as to control the expression of his countenance ? I 
answer, without hesitation, yes. "Whatever ought to be done, 
can be done." It is not jjerfectly easy to do it, especially for the 
teacher. Still, self-control — full, complete self-control— is his 
appropriate duty as well as privilege. He must, as Carlyle 
quaintly enjoins, ''learn to devour the chagrins of his lot.'' He 
must calculate beforehand that every day will bring its cares and 
its trials ; but he should daily resolve that they shall never take 
him by surprise, nor betray him into sudden impatience. Each 
morning as he walks to the scene of his labors, he should fortify 
himself against sudden anger or habitual moroseness on this 
wise: 

"No doubt this day some untoward occurrence will trans- 
pire, calculated to try my patience and to provoke me to fretful 
words and angry looks. All my past experience leads me to 
expect this. But this day I will try to resist the temptation to 
this weakness. I will try to be self-possessed. If any child is 
vicious, or fretful, or dull, or even impudent, I will endeavor to 
show that I can command myself. If I feel some angry passion 
enkindling within me, I will stop and think, and I will endeavor 
to smile before I speak. If I can to-day gain the victory over 
impatience, and can maintain an even and cheerful temper, and 



264 PAGE'S THEORY AND PRACTICE. 

express it constantly in my countenance, it will be easier to do 
it to-morrow. At all events, 111 try.'' 

Taking hold thus in earnest, any man may soon be his own 
master. He can gain the victory. If he can do it, he ought to 
do it. Hence I urge it as a duty. Nor is it merely a duty. It is a 
high privilege. A complete victory for a single day will bring its 
own reward. A man who feels that he has risen above his temp- 
tation can return to his rest with a light and happy heart. 
Sleep to him will be sweet, and he will arise on the morrow with 
renewed strength for the fresh conflict,— and in the moral as well 
as in the literal warfare, every contest which ends in victory, 
gives additional strength to the victor, while it weakens and 
disheartens his enemy. 

VI. Study to acquire the art of aptly illustrating a difficult 
subject. — Some teachers content themselves with answering in 
the precise language of the book whenever a question for infor- 
mation is propounded. This, however, is by no means sufficient, 
even when the language of the book is strictly accurate; much 
less, when the language is so vague as to convey no definite idea 
to the mind, either of the learner or the teacher. On the other 
hand, a man who is apt to teach, will devise some ingenious 
method of enlightening the mind of his pupil, so that he shall lay 
hold of the idea as with a manly grasp, and make it his own 
forever. 

This point, will, perhaps, be best illustrated by an example. A 
young man was employed to take charge of a school for a few 
days during a temporary illness of the regular instructor. He 
was a good scholar, as the world would say, and was really 
desirous to answer the expectation of his employers. After the 
regular teacher had so far recovered his health as to be able to 
leave his room, he walked one pleasant day to the school, to see 
what success attended the labors of the new incumbent. A class 
was reciting in natural philosophy. The subject under considera- 
tion was — the obstacles which impede the motion of machinery. 
The attraction of gravity, as one of these, was pretty easily dis- 
posed of; for the class had before been instructed on that point. 



MISCELLANEOUS SUGGESTIONS. 265 

Friction came next. Here, too, the pupils, having had some 
practical experience of their own, in dragging their sleds, in skat- 
ing, or perhaps in turning a grindstone, found no great difficulty. 
The book spoke in language sufficiently clear to be understood. 
Next came the "resistance of the various media," to use the lan- 
guage of the text-book, "Yes," said the teacher, as one of the 
pupils gravely quoted this language, "that has no inconsiderable 
effect." 

"The 'resistance of the various media? '"—repeated one of 
the boys inquiringly; "I do not know as I understand what 
media means." 

"A medium is that in which a body moves," was the ready 
reply which the teacher read from the book. 

Pupil "Am edium ? ' ' 

Teacher. "Yes; we s'a,j medium when we mean but one, and 
media when we mean more than one." 

Pupil. " When we mean but one? " 

Teacher. "Yes; medium is singular — zTjecZia is plural." 

After this discussion, which began in philosophy but ended in 
grammar, the teacher was about to proceed with the next ques- 
tion of the book. But the scholar was not yet satisfied, and he 
ventured to press his inquiries a little further. 

Pupil " Is this room a medium ? " 

Teacher. " This room ? " 

Pupil " Yes, sir; you said that a medium was 'that in which 
anybody moves,' and we all move in this room." 

Teacher. " Yes, but medium does not mean a room ; it is the 
substance in which a body moves." 

Here the lad looked perplexed and unsatisfied. He had no 
clear idea of the meaning of this new term. The teacher looked 
at his watch, and then glanced at the remaining pages of the les- 
son and seemed impatient to proceed,— so the pupil forbore to 
Inquire further. 

The regular teacher, who had listened to the discussion with 
no ordinary interest, both because he admired the inquisitiveness 
of the bo}^ and because he was curious to discover how far the 



266 PAGE'S THEORY AND PRACTICE. 

new incumbent possessed the power of illustration, here inter- 
posed. 

"John,"— taking his w^atch in his hand— "would this watch 
continue to go, if I should drop it into a pail of water? " 
' "I should think it would not long," said John, after a little 
reflection. 

"Why not ? " said his teacher, as he opened his watch. 

"Because the water would get round the wheels and stop it, I 
should think," said John. 

" How would it be if I should drop it into a quart of molasses?" 

The boys laughed. 

"Or into a barrel of tar ? " 

The boys still smiled. 

"Suppose I should force it, while open, into a quantity of 
lard?" 

Here the boys laughed heartily, while John said, "the watch 
would not go in any of these articles." 

'^Articles? '^ said his teacher, " w^hy not say media? '^ 

John's eye glistened as he caught the idea. " Oh, I understand 
it now." 

His teacher then said, that many machines worked in air, — 
then the air was the medium. A fish swims in w^ater,— water is 
his medium. A fish could hardly swim in molasses or tar. "Now," 
inquired he, " why not ? " 

"Because of the resistance of the medium," said John with a 
look of satisfaction. 

" Now why will the watch go in air and not in water? " 

" Because the water is more dense," said John promptly. 

" Then upon what does the resistance of a medium depend?" 

Here the new teacher interposed, and said that was the next 
question in the book, and he was just going to ask it himself. 
The regular teacher put his watch into his pocket and became a 
spectator again, and the lesson proceeded with unwonted vivaci- 
ty. The difference between these two teachers mainly consisted 
in the fact, that one had the ingenuity to devise an expedient to 
meet a difficulty whenever occasion required,— the other had not. 



MISCELLANEOUS SUGGESTIONS. 267 

Now, in order to teach well, a man should diligently seek for 
expedients. He should endeavor to foresee the very points where 
the learner will stumble, and provide himself with the means of 
rendering timely aid. If an object cannot be described in words, 
let it be compared with what it resembles, or with what it con- 
trasts. If it be an object of sense, and words and comparisons 
fail to describe it,— in the absence of apparatus to represent it, 
let the teacher spring to the blackboard and execute a hasty 
drawing of it. In this way the construction or the working of a 
machine, the form of a bone or the action of a joint, the shape of 
a town or the plan of a building,— in short, almost every subject 
that involves the relation of form, size, proportion, quantity, or 
number, will admit of visible illustration. He is the successful 
teacher who is able at the moment to seize upon the best expedi- 
ent, and render it subservient to his purpose. 

VII. Take advantage of unusual occurrences to make a moral 
or religious impression.— Innjiovmer chapter I have urged it as 
a part of the teacher's work, to cultivate and strengthen both 
the moral sentiments and the religious feelings of the members of 
his school. This is not most effectually done by a formal mode 
of speaking to them on these subjects. If a particular hour is set 
apart for formal lectures on their duty to their fellow-men and 
their obligations to God, they are very apt to fortify their sensi- 
bilities against the most faithful appeals, and thus render them 
powerless. The wise teacher will watch for the fit opportunity, 
and, just at the moment when the heart is prepared by some suit- 
able occurrence,— when by some exhibition of the Creator's power 
it is awed into reverence, or softened into submission ; or by some 
display of his goodness it is warmed into gratitude, or animated 
with delight,— with a few words, seasonably and "fitly spoken," 
he fixes the impression forever. Speaking at the right time, every 
ear listens, and every heart feels. 

Perhaps many of my readers can revert to some season in their 
childhood, endeared to them by a precious recollection of golden 
words thus opportunely uttered, — words fraught with truth 
which in after-life has had an unspeakable influence in the forma- 



268 PAGE'S THEORY AND PRACTICE. 

tion of their character. One or two examples connected with my 
own experience, may be presented, more fully to illustrate my 
meaning; while at the same time they may afford, it is hoped, 
some valuable hints for the encouragement and guidance of such 
young teachers as desire in this way to make themselves the 
instruments of lasting benefit to the young. 

Example I.— I can never forget — nor would I if I could — a 
lesson impressed upon my own youthful mind, conveying the 
truth that we are constantly dependent upon our Heavenly 
Father for protection. In a plain country schoolhouse, some 
twenty-five children, including myself, were assembled with our 
teacher on the afternoon of a summer's day. We had been as 
happy and as thoughtless as the sportive lambs that cropped 
the clover of the neighboring hill-side. Engrossed Avith study or 
play, — for at this distance of time it is impossible to tell which, — 
we had not noticed the low rumbling of the distant thunder, till 
a sudden flash of lightning arrested our attention. Immediately 
the sun was veiled by the cloud, and the corresponding gloom set- 
tled upon every face within. The elder girls, with the characteris- 
tic though tfulness of woman, hastily inquired whether they should 
not make the attempt to lead their younger brothers and sisters 
to the paternal roof before the bursting of the storm. For a 
moment our little community was thrown into utter confusion. 
The teacher stepped hastily to the door to survey more perfectly 
the aspect of the western heavens. Immediately retui'uing, he 
signified to the children that there would not be time for them to 
reach their homes before the tempest would be upon them. Op- 
pressed with dread, — for it is no uncommon thing for children in 
the country to be terrified by lightning,— some of the youngest 
of us clung to our older brothers or sisters, while others, being 
the sole representatives of their family in the school, for the 
first time felt their utter loneliness in the midst of strangers, 
and gave utterance to their feelings in audible sighs or unequiv- 
ocal sobs. 

The teacher, meanwhile, with an exemplary calmness and self- 
possession, closed the windows and doors, and then seated him- 



MISCELLANEOUS SUGGESTIONS. 269 

self quite near the younger pupils, to await the result. The thick 
darkness gathered about us, as if to make the glare of the light- 
ning, by contrast, more startling to our vision ; while the loud 
thunder almost instantly followed, as it were the voice of God. 
The wind howled through the branches of a venerable tree near 
by, bending its sturdy trunk, and threatening to break asunder 
the cords which bound it to its mother earth. An angry gust 
assailed the humble building where we were sheltered ; it roared 
down the capacious chimney, violently closed a shutter that 
lacked a fastening, breaking the glass by its concussion, and 
almost forced in the frail window sashes on the westerly side of 
the room. Quicker and more wild the lightnings glared— flash 
after flash — as if the heavens were on fire; louder and nearer the 
thunder broke above our heads, while the inmates of the room, 
save the teacher, were pale with terror. 

At this moment there was a sudden cessation of the war of 
elements,— a hush — almost a prophetic pause! It was that brief 
interval which precedes the falling torrent. A dread stillness 
reigned within the room. Every heart beat hurriedly, and every 
countenance told the consternation that was reigning within. 
It was an awful moment ! 

With a calm voice, breathing a subdued and confiding spirit, 
the teacher improved this opportunity to impress upon our 
young minds a great truth. "Fear not, children," said he, "it 
is your Heavenly Father that sends the storm as well as the sun- 
shine and the gentle breeze. You have been just as much in his 
power all day, as you are at this moment. He has been as near 
you, supporting you, supplying you with breath, with life, all 
through the pleasant morning; but then you did not see him. He 
is just as able to protect you now, for 'not a sparrow falls to the 
ground without his notice,'— and he ruleth the storm and ' rideth 
upon the wings of the wind.' We should ever feel willing to trust 
him; for he is ever able to grant us deliverance from all our 
dangers. God is here now to protect us." 

Just as he had finished these words the rain began to fall. 
First the drops were few and scattered ; but soon the windows of 



270 PAGE'S THEORY AND PliACTlCE. 

Heaven were opened, and the thirsty ground was abundantly 
satisfied. The sound of the thunder became fainter and fainter 
as the cloud passed aw^ay; the sun burst out again in renewed 
splendor; the full drops glittered in his beams upon the grass; 
the birds began their songs; the rainbow^ spanned the eastern 
hills; and our hearts, taught by the timely instructions of a good 
man, began to expand with eager gratitude for our preservation 
by the hand of our Heavenly Father. 

The remainder of the afternoon passed happily away; and 
when our books were laid aside, and we were ready to burst out 
of the room to enjoy the refreshing air and participate in the 
general joy, the teacher, taking the Bible from the desk, asked 
us to remain quiet a moment while he would read a few words 
that he hoped we should never forget. 

The passage was the following, from the 65th Psalm : — 

By terrible things in righteousness wilt thou answer us, O God of our 
salvation; who art the confidence of all the ends of the earth, and of 
them that are afar off upon the sea. Which by his strength setteth 
fast the mountains; being girded with power; which stilleth the noise of 
the seas, the noi.st of their waves, and the tumult of the people. 

They also that dwell in the uttermost parts are afraid at thy tokens; 
thou makest the outgoings of the morning and evening to rejoice. 

Thou visitest the earth and waterest it; thou greatly enrichest it with 
the river of God, which is full of water; thou preparest them corn, when 
thou hast so provided for it. 

Thou waterest the ridges thereof abundantly: thou settlest the fur- 
rows thereof: thou makest it soft with showers: thou blessest the spring- 
ing thereof. 

Thou crownest the year with thy goodness; and thy paths drop fat- 
ness. They drop upon the pastures of the wilderness: and the little 
hills rejoice on every side. 

The pastures are clothed with flocks; the valleys also arecovered over 
with corn; they shout for joy, they also sing. 

After closing the book, the teacher said, "Go out now, chil- 
dren, and witness how perfectly these words have been fulfilled 
toward us this afternoon,— and from this day's mercies, learn 
hereafter to trust God as confidently in the storm, when he dis- 
plays his power by his outward 'tokens,' as when he kindly smiles 



MISCELLANEOUS SUGGESTIONS. 271 

upon 3"ou in the beams of the glorious sun, or gently breathes 
upon you in the morning breeze." 

We went forth bounding in gladness and gratitude, and saw 
the " outgoings of the evening to rejoice, "—"the pastures clothed 
with flocks,"—" the valleys covered over with corn,"— "the little 
hills rejoicing on every side;"— we heard also the general shout 
for joy; — and we felt as we never before had felt, a deep, 
thorough, abiding conviction of the truth that God is our 
father and our friend ; the God of our salvation. 

I know not how soon these impressions faded from the minds 
of the other children,— but for myself I can say, that from that 
time to the present, whenever I have been exposed to apparent 
danger from the impending tempest, the warring elements, or 
the ravages of disease, the teachings of that hour have always 
revived in my mind to soothe my troubled spirit, and to reassure 
my faith and confidence in the presence of an all-sufficient and 
merciful Preserver. A thousand times have I devoutly blessed 
the memory of that faithful teacher, for having so early and so 
happily turned my thoughts upward to Him, in whom "we live, 
and move, and have our being." 

Example II.— It was in the afternoon of a gloomy day in the 
latter part of November, when the pupils, consisting of some fifty 
boys, belonging to a school in a pleasant seaport town in New 
England, were told by their teacher, a few minutes before the 
usual hour, that they might lay aside their studies, and prepare 
for dismission. During the early part of the day there had been 
one of those violent southeast rain-storms, so common upon the 
seacoast at that season of the year. It is w^ell known to the 
observing mariner, that a storm from the so^utheast never con- 
tinues beyond twelve or fifteen hours; and when the violence of 
the storm abates, it is a common remark of the sailor, that "the 
northwester is not long in debt to the southeaster." Previous 
to this change of wind, however, there is what is expressively 
termed the "lull of the storm,"— a period when the rain ceases 
to fall, the wind dies away to a perfect calm, the barometer is 
suddenly depressed, the clouds hover almost upon the face of the 



272 PAGE'S THEORY AND PRACTICE. 

earth, shutting out the light of the sun, and causing a cheerless 
damp to settle upon everything terrestrial, and a "dreary gloom 
to enshroud the mind itself. When the wind changes, these clouds 
are not gradually dissolved and broken up, so that the eye can 
catch transient glimpses of the blue sky beyond, as after a snow- 
storm in winter; but the dark drapery is suddenly lifted up, as if 
by an unseen hand, and the western sky, from the horizon up- 
wards, is left more bright and more charming than ever, to 
refresh the eye and reanimate the soul. 

It was such a day, as before remarked, when the pupils of this 
school — partly because of the darkness in the schoolroom, and 
partly because of their protracted confinement within a close 
apartment during a gloomy afternoon— were, a little earlier than 
usual, about to be dismissed. The pupils all seemed to welcome 
the happy release that awaited them,— and in their eagerness to 
escape from confinement, the^" very naturally neglected to observe 
their accustomed regard for quiet and order in laying aside their 
books. It was, however, a fixed habit with the teacher, never to 
give the signal for leaving the room till all the pupils had taken 
the proper attitude for passing out with regularity, and then had 
composed themselves to perfect silence. On this occasion perhaps 
two minutes passed away while the boys were gradually, almost 
impatiently, bringing themselves to a compliance with this rule 
of the teacher. 

During this interval of waiting, the cloud, unperceived by the 
teaclier, had been slowly raised up from the western horizon, just 
in time to allow the setting sun to bestow a farewell glance upon 
the sorrowing world at his leave taking. Through the Venetian 
blinds that guarded the windows toward the west, the celestial 
light gleamed athwart the apartment, and painted the opposite 
wall, in front of the pupils, with streaks of burnished gold! In an 
instant every countenance was changed. A smile now jo^^ously 
played where before sadness and discontent had held their moody 
reign. The teacher was reminded, by all these circumstances, of 
the beautiful language of the prophet, which promised the gift of 
"the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness.'" What could 



MISCELLANEOUS SUGGESTIONS. 273 

be more appropriate on this occasion than a song of praise? 
Without speaking: a single word, the teacher commencecl one of 
the little songs already familiar to the whole school :— 

Lo the heavens are breaking, 

Pure and bright above; 
Life and light awaking. 

Murmur — God is love. 

God is love. 

Bound yon pine-clad mountain, 

Flows a golden flood ; 
Hear the sparkling fountain, 

Whisper — God is good. 

God is good. 

Wake, my heart, and springing. 

Spread thy wings above, — 
Soaring still and singing, 

God is ever good. 

God is good. 

Instantly every voice that had ever sung, now uttered heart- 
felt praise. The attendant circumstances, taken at the happy 
moment, furnished such an impressive commentary upon the 
import of the words, that they were felt, as they never before had 
been felt to be the words of precious truth. Every heart throbbed 
in unison with the sentiment. At the close of the song, there was 
profound silence in the room. After a moment's pause, during 
which the truth that God is good seemed to pervade each mind 
and hold it in silent reverence,— the signal for departure was 
given. One after another the boys passed from their seats with 
a light and careful step, as if noise and haste would be a desecra- 
tion both of the time and place,— and when they reached the open 
air, refreshing and exhilarating as it was, there w^as no boister- 
ous shout, no rude mirth; each took his homeward course, appar- 
ently with a new and lively conviction that God is good. 

It has always been a source of pleasure to that teacher to recall 
from the ''buried past" the associations connected with that 
delightful hour and that charming song ; and it has been among 

T. P.— 18 



274 PAGE'S THEORY AND PRACTICE. 

the most gratifying incidents of his experience as a teacher, to 
hear more than one of those pupils in later life recur to the mem- 
ory of that day, and acknowledge with thankfulness the lasting 
impressions which then and there were made upon their minds. 



It would be easy to furnish examples to almost any extent, of 
the manner in which this principle has been, or may be carried 
out in practice. The degradation of an intoxicated person who 
may pass the school,— the pitiable condition of the man who 
may wander through the streets bereft of his reason,— any 
instance of sudden death in the neighborhood, particularly of a 
young person,— the passing of a funeral procession,— in short, 
any occurrence that arrests the attention of the young and 
enlists their feeling, may be seized upon as the means of making 
upon their minds an impression for good. The facts developed 
in many of their lessons, too, afford opportunities for incidental 
moral instruction. The adaptation of means to ends,— the evi- 
dence of design and intelligence displayed in the works of crea- 
tion,— the existence of constant and uniform laws as developed 
in the sciences, :all furnish the means of leading the young mind 
to God. 

That teacher will enjoy the richest satisfaction in the evening 
of life, who, in looking back upon his past experience, shall be 
conscious that he has improved every opportunity, which God 
has given him, to turn the youthful affections away from the 
things of earth to seek a worthier object in things above. 



CHAPTER XVI. 

THE REWARDS OF THE TEACHER. 

It is proverbial that the pecuniary compensation of the 
teacher is, in most places, far below the proper standard. It is 
very much to be regretted that an employment so important in 
all its bearings, should be so poorly rewarded. In New England 
there are many young women who, having spent some time in 
teaching, have left that occupation to go into the large manufac- 
turing establishments as laborers, simply because they could 
receive a higher compensation. I have known several instances 
in which young ladies, in humble circumstances, have left teach- 
ing to become domestics, thus performing the most ordinary 
manual labor, because they could receive better pay ; that is, the 
farmers and mechanics of the district could afford to pay more 
liberally for washing and ironing, for making butter and cheese, 
for sweeping floors and cleaning paint, than they could for educat- 
ing the immortal minds of their children ! 

Nor is this confined to the female sex. Young mechanics and 
farmers, as well as those employed in manufacturing, frequently 
receive higher wages than the common-school teacher in the same 
district. Many a young man who has only genius enough to 
drive the pegs of a shoe in a regular row, and skill enough to 
black the surface of the article when it is completed, having spent 
but a few weeks in learning his trade, receives more money for his 
work than he who, after having spent months, or even years, in 
gaining the requisite qualifications, labors to polish that nobler 
material, the human soul. 

The injustice of this becomes more apparent when we bear in 
mind that public opinion demands, and justly too, that the 
teacher should be not only gentlemanly in his manners, but 
better clad than the mere laborer, — thus throwing upon him a 

(275) 



276 PAGE'S THEORY AND PRACTICE. 

greater burden without affording- him the means of sustaining it. 
The female teacher of a district school, in order to be respectable, 
must be much more expensively dressed than the domestic in the 
family where she boards, and is thus compelled to consume most 
of her receipts upon her wardrobe,— while the domestic is able to 
place surplus money at interest in the savings bank. This injus- 
tice has so often been laid before the people, and yet has been so 
long continued, that many have given up in despair, and aban- 
doned an employment that has yielded so little, choosing rather 
to engage in that lower service which is so much better paid. 

This sufficiently explains why so many unqualified teachers 
have been found in our common schools. Men of talents and 
ability being tempted to other employments, have left the field 
unoccupied; and those men who have failed to gain a comforta- 
ble living by their hands, have been allowed to try the experi- 
ment of supporting life by their wits,— that is, by becoming 
teachers ! 

Such has been the case for a long time past; and, though in 
many quarters the people are beginning to open their eyes to 
their true interest, and are gradually and commendably coming 
up to their duty, yet, for some time to come, the pecuniary com- 
pensation will not constitute the chief reward of the teacher. If 
he will go cheerfully to his work, and find his daily enjoyment in 
his daily toil, he must have a higher object, some more elevating, 
inspiring motive, than mere money-getting. The chief encourage- 
ments of the faithful teacher \i€ in another direction. 

It is the object of the following paragraphs to point out some 
of these encouragements; for, having in the preceding pages 
required very much at his hands, I feel that it is but just that he 
should be invited to look at the brighter side of the picture, so 
that w^hen he is ready to sink under the responsibilities of his 
position, or to yield to the obstacles that oppose his progress, he 
may have something to animate his soul, and to nerve him anew 
for the noble confiict. 

I. The teacher's employment affords the means of intellectual 
growth.— \i a man teaches as he should teach he must of neces- 



THE REWARDS OF THE TEACHER. 277 

sity improve himself. Teaching, imderstandingly pursued, gives 
accuracy. I know it is possiV)le for a man to be a mere school- 
master—a pedagogue, without any self-improvement. But I am 
speaking of the faithful, devoted teacher, —the man who studies, 
reflects, invents. Such a man learns more than his pupils. Every 
time he takes a class through any branch of study, he does it 
more skillfully, more thoroughly than before. He brings some 
fresh illustration of it, presents some new view of it, and hence 
takes a lively interest in it himself, and awakens a new zeal 
among his pupils. Measuring himself by his new success, he feels 
a consciousness of growth, of progress. This consciousness is a 
precious reward. 

II. The teacher's employment affords the means of moral 
^roT*^'^/^.— Brought constantly in contact with those who need a 
careful guidance, he feels impelled to earnest effort in order to 
obtain the mastery over himself, as the best means of gaining 
complete influence over others. Studying the weak points in their 
character, he is constantly reminded of those in his own, and self- 
knowledge is the first step toward self-improvement. Beginning 
in the feebleness of inexperience, he bolsters up his authority at 
first by a frequent resort to force; but, as he goes on, he finds 
himself gradually gaining such ascendency over the vicious as to 
control them quite as effectually by milder means. At first, easily 
excited to anger or impatience, he frequently indulged in severe 
language when it was unnecessary,— but by careful discipline he 
has learned to "set a watch before his mouth and to keep the 
door of his lips." Encouraged by one victory over himself, he is 
prepared for another. Having learned by self-discipline to con- 
trol his outward acts, he next attempts the mastery of his 
thoughts. He soon finds that his moral power over others is 
very much increased. Somehow — though perhaps he cannot yet 
tell the reason why— he finds he can secure obedience with half 
the effort formerly required, — he gains the love of his pupils 
more readily, — and, with the exception, now and then, of an 
extreme case, he finds that he excites a deeper interest than ever 
before in the whole round of duty among the scholars. Why is 



278 PAGE'S THEORY AND PRACTICE. 

this? he asks,— and the conseiousiiess of increased moral power 
rising up within him, is a source of the highest satisfaction. 
Pecuniary emohiment sinks into nothing considered as a reward, 
when compared with a conscious victory over himself. 

III. A consciousness of improvement in the art of teaching is 
another reward. — Such improvement will follow^ as a matter of 
course from his self-improvement in the particulars just named. 
As his own mind expands, he feels a new impulse to exert himself 
to interest others in the subjects he teaches. He soon comes to 
look upon the work of instruction, not as a mere mechanical 
business, to be done in a formal way, but as a noble art, based 
upon certain great principles that are capable of being under- 
stood and applied. He employs all his ingenuity to discover the 
natural order of presenting truth to the mind,— to ascertain the 
precise degree of aid the learner needs, and the point w^here the 
teacher should stop. He studies carefully the proper motives to 
be presented as incentives to exertion. Interested in his labor as 
a great work, looking upon his influence as telling upon all future 
time, he devotes himself daily with new zeal, and is rewarded^ith 
the consciousness of new success. 

TV. The teacher is permitted also to witness the constant 
growth of mind among his pupils.— I say constant, because the 
teacher is not obliged to labor without seeing immediate results. 
The minister of religion may sometimes sow the seed of the good 
word, while the fruit does not appear for a long season. Some- 
times a spiritual apathy prevails, so that the most faithful warn- 
ings and the most earnest appeals seem to fall powerless upon 
the conscience; and he is led almost to despair of ever being able 
to break the deathlike slumber. It is not thus with the teacher. 
His labor tells immediately upon the young mind. Even while he 
is yet speaking, he is gratified with observing the soul's expan- 
sion as it grasps and assimilates some new idea which he pre- 
sents. From day to day, as he meets his classes, he sees how 
they go on from strength to strength,— at first, indeed, with the 
halting, tottering step of the feeble babe, but soon with the firm 
and confident tread of the vigorous youth. 



TEE REWARDS OF THE TEACHER. 279 

A teacher who is for several years employed in his vocation, is 
often astonished at the rapidity with which the young, who come 
to him as mere children, grow into men and women, and take 
their places on the stage of life as prominent actors. Some of 
them distinguish themselves in the arts; some become noted for 
their attainments in science; some receive the honors of office 
and become leaders in civil affairs; some gain eminence as pro- 
fessional men; and very likely a large portion of them are 
engaged in the various departments of honorable industry. 
Wherever they are, and whatever they are, they are now exerting 
a powerful influence in the community. They have groAvn up 
under his eye, and have been essentially shaped by his plastic 
hand. He looks upon them almost with the interest and pride of 
a father. He counts them as his jewels; and when he hears of 
their success, their usefulness, and their honors, his heart leaps 
within him, as he thinks, " they were my pupils J ^ Even though 
he may have wasted the strength of his best days in the service, 
what a, reward is this for the teacher! 

V. The teacher has the consciousness of being engaged in a 
useful and honorable calling. — What though he may not become 
rich in this world's goods? Who would not prefer above houses 
and lands,— infinitely above all the wealth of earth, the conscious- 
ness of being engaged in a work of usefulness? Man was made 
for usefulness, — and who would not desire to answer the design 
of his creation ? 

My pen is too feeble to attempt to portray the usefulness of 
the faithful teacher. He educates the immortal mind,— wakes it 
to thought,— trains it to discipline— self-discipline,— moves it to 
truth and virtue,— fills it with longings for a more perfect state, 
and sends it forth to exert its power for good through all coming 
time! "To this end," in the glowing language of Professor 
Agnew, "he communicates a knowledge of letters, opens out 
gradually before the child the book of nature and the literature 
of the world; he disciplines his mind and teaches him how to 
gather knowledge from every source; he endeavors to impart 
quickness and retentiveness of memory, to cultivate a refined and 



280 PAGE'S THEORY AND PRACTICE. 

well regulated imagination, to task, and thus to give vigor to his 
reasoning powers. He points out the appropriate objects of the 
several affections, and the proper exercise of the passions; he 
gives lessons to conscience, derived from the pure fountain of 
God's own revelation, and teaches him to subject his own will to 
the Highest AVill. He instructs him in the various sciences, and 
thus displays before him worlds of wondrous interest, and invests 
him with the sources and means of pure enjoyment. He trains 
him for the sweet sympathies of social life; and unfolds before him 
the high behests of duty— duty to himself, his fellow-creatures, 
his family, his God. 

"Under such a tuition, behold the helpless infant grown to 
manhood's prime,— a body well developed, strong and active; a 
mind symmetrically unfolded, and powers of intellection closely 
allied to those of the spirits in celestial spheres. He becomes a 
husband and a father; in these, and in all the relations of life, he 
performs well his part. Above all he is a Christian, with well- 
trained affections and a tender conscience, supremely loving God, 
maintaining a constant warfare with the world, the flesh, and the 
devil,— growing up into the stature of a perfect man in Christ, 
and anticipating the fullness of joy and pleasure for evermore 
which are at God's right hand. The time of his departure at 
length arrives ; he has fought the good fight, he has finished his 
course, and he goes to obtain his crown and to attune his harp, 
and forever to dwell on the hills of light and love, where angels 
gather immortality. Oh, what a transit; from the dependent 
helplessne.ss of infancy to the glory of a seraph; from mind 
scarcely manifested, to mind ranging over the immensity of 
Jehovah's empire, and rising in the loftiest exercises of reason 
and affection! And how much has the faithful teacher had to do 
in fitting him for the blissful mansions of the skies! " 

If such be tlie teacher's work, where is the limit to his useful- 
ness? Yet he ma}^ do this not for one merely, but for scores, or 
even hundreds. Eternity alone can display the immeasurable, 
inconceivable usefulness of one devoted teacher. 

And is not the teacher's calling honorable? It is,— for its 



THE REWARDS OF THE TEACHER. 281 

usefulness makes it honorable. To scatter the light of truth is 
always honorable. So some of the greatest and best men the 
world ever saw have believed, and have illustrated their faith by 
their pi-actice. Confucius, Socrates, Seneca, Aristotle, and Plato 
were specimens of the teachers of ancient date. Roger Ascham, 
John Milton, Francke, Pestalozzi, iVrnold, and a host of others, 
have adorned the profession in later times. Yet these are men 
who have taught the world to think. Their works live after 
them, — and will continue to live, when the proud fame of the 
mighty warriors, who have marked their course in blood, shall 
have perished from the earth. 

If it were necessary and not invidious, how many distinguished 
men in our own country could be mentioned, who have been 
teachers of the young, or who are still engaged as such. Besides 
those who have made teaching the business of their lives, how 
many have been temporarily employed in this calling. Some of 
our presidents, many of our governors, most of our jurists and 
divines, — indeed, some of every profession, "and of the chief 
women not a /eTi^"— have first distinguished themselves as school- 
teachers. Well may teachers, then, regard their profession as an 
honorable one; always remembering, however, that "it is not 
the position which makes the man honorable, but the man the 
position." 

VI. The teacher enjoys the grateful remembrance of his pupils 
and of their friends.— When a distinguished writer said, " God be 
thanked for the gift of mothers and schoolmasters," he expressed 
but the common sentiment of the human heart. The name of 
parent justly enkindles the warmest emotions in the heart of him 
who has gone out from his native home to engage in the busy 
scenes of the work-day world; and when sometimes he retires 
from the companionship of new-made friends to recall the picture 
of the past and the loved of other days,— to think 

"Of chiMi.sh joys when bounding boyhood knew 
No grief, but chased the gorgeous butterfly, 
And gambol'd with the breeze, that tossed about 
His silken curls — " 



282 PAGE'S THEORY AND PRACTICE. 

how sweetly do the gentle influences of home and childhood, with 
all their tender and hallowed associations, come stealing over the 
soul ! The world is forgotten ; care may not intrude upon this 
sacred hour; objects of sense are unheeded; the call to pleasure is 
disregarded ;— while the rapt soul introverted — transported— 
dwells with unspeakable delight upon its consecrated recollection 
of all that is venerable, all that is sacred in the name of parent. 
At this favored hour, how the heart swells at the thought of a 
mother's love! The smiles, the kind words, the sympathy, the 
counsels, the prayers, the tears, — how fondly the memory treas- 
ures them all up, and claims them for its own! And though 
Death may have long since intruded, and consigned that gentle 
form to the cold earth, rudely sundering the cherished bonds of 
affection, and leaving the hearthstone desolate,— though Change 
may have brought strangers to fell the favorite tree, to remove 
the ancient landmarks, to lay waste the pleasant places, and even 
to tread thoughtlessly by the humble mound that marks the 
revered spot where " departed worth is laid," though Time, "with 
his effacing fingers," may have been busy in obliterating the 
impressions of childhood from the mind, or in burying them 
deeply beneath the rubbish of perplexing cares, — still the true 
heart never tires with the thought of a fond parent, nor ever 
ceases to "thank God ujDon every remembrance" of a pious, 
devoted mother ! 

Thus it should ever be. Nothing on earth should be allowed to 
claim the gratitude which is justly due to judicious parents. But 
the faithful, devoted teacher, the former of youthful character 
and the guide of youthful study, will be sure to have the next 
place in the grateful heart. Whether the young man treads the 
deck of the noble ship, in his lonely watch, as she proudly walks 
the waters by night, — or journeys among strangers in foreign 
lands ; — wherever he goes, or however employed,— as often as his 
thoughts revisit the scenes of his childhood, and dwell with interest 
upon the events that marked his youthful progress, he will recur 
to the old familiar schoolhouse, call up its well remembered inci- 
dents—its joys and its sorrows— its trials and its triumphs— its 



THE REWARDS OF THE TEACHER. 283 

all-pervading and ever-abiding influences, and devoutly thank 
God for the gift of a faithful, self-denying, patient teacher. 

But the teacher is rewarded also by the gratitude of parents 
and friends. Some of the sweetest moments a teacher ever expe- 
riences ^re those when a parent takes him by the hand, and with 
cordial sincerity and deep emotion, thanks him for what he has 
done for his child. It may have been a w^ayward, thoughtless, 
perhaps a vicious boy, whom kind words and a warm heart, on 
the part of the teacher, have won back to the path of rectitude 
and virtue. 

I have seen an old lady — and I shall never forget the sight — 
bending under the infirmities of age,— blind, and yet dependent 
mainly upon her labor for support, invoking the richest of 
heaven's blessings upon the head of a teacher, who, by kindness 
and perseverance, had won back her wayward grandson to obedi- 
ence and duty. How her full soul labored as she described the 
change that had taken place ! Her emotion— too deep for utter- 
ance in words — found expression only in tears that streamed 
from her sightless eyes ! She felt that her boy was again a child 
of hope and promise, and that he might yet be a virtuous and a 
useful man. The world may raise its empty acclamation to 
honor the man of power and of fame,— it may applaud the 
statesman and weave the chaplet for the conqueror's brow;— but 
the teacher, humble and obscure though he may be, who is the 
object of the widow's gratitude for being the orphan's friend, 
with the consciousness of deserving it, is a happier, I had almost 
said a greater man. Surely he receives a greater reward. 

Vn. The faithful teacher enjoys the approval of Heaven.— He 
is employed, if he has a right spirit, in a heavenly mission. He 
is doing his Heavenly Father's business. That man should be 
made wiser and happier, is the will of Heaven. To this end, the 
Son of God — the Great Teacher — came to bless our race. So 
far as the schoolmaster has the spirit of Jesus, he is engaged in 
the same great work. Heaven regards with complacency the 
humble efforts of the faithful teacher to raise his fellow-beings 
from the darkness of ignorance and the slavery of superstition; 



284 PAGE'S THEORY AND PRACTICE. 

and if a more glorious crown is held in reserve for one rather 
than another, it is for him who, uncheered by worldly applause, 
and without the prospect of adequate reward from his fellow- 
men, cheerfully practices the self-denial of his master, spending 
his strength, and doing with diligence and patience ''whatsoever 
his hand findeth to do," towards raising his fellow-beings to 
happiness and heaven. 

It is such a teacher that the eloquent and gifted Lord 
Brougham describes in the following beautiful language: 

"He meditates and prepares, in secret, the plans which are to 
bless mankind ; he slowly gathers around him those who are to 
further their execution, — he quietly, though firmly, advances in 
his humble path, laboring steadily, but calmly, till he has opened 
to the light all the recesses of ignorance, and torn up by the roots 
the weeds of vice. His progress is not to be compared with any- 
thing like the march of the conqueror, — but it leads to a far more 
brilliant triumph and to laurels more imperishable than the 
destroyer of his species, the scourge of the world, ever won. Each 
one of these great teachers of the world, possessing his soul in 
peace, performs his appointed course, awaits in patience the ful- 
fillment of the promises, and resting from his labors, bequeaths 
his memory to the generation whom his works have blessed, and 
sleeps under the humble, but not inglorious epitaph, commemo- 
rating 'one in whom mankind lost ii friend, and no man got rid 
of an enemy.' " 

In view of what has been said, let the teacher cease to repine 
at his hard lot. Let him cast an occasional glance at the bright 
prospect before him. He deserves, to be sure, a higher pecuniary 
reward than he receives; and he should never cease to press this 
truth upon the community, till talent in teaching is as well com- 
pensated as talent in any other calling. But whether he gains 
this or not, let him dwell upon the privileges and rewards to be 
found in the calling itself, and take fresh encouragement. 

The apostle, Paul, exhibited great wisdom when he said, "/ 
magnify mine office.'' If the foregoing views respecting the im- 



THE REWARDS OF THE TEACHER. 285 

portance of the teacher's calling are correct, he may safely follow 
the apostle's example. This is not, however, to be done merely 
by boastful words. No man can elevate himself, or magnify his 
office in public estimation, by indulging in empty declamation, or 
by passing inflated resolutions. He must feeJ the dignity of his 
profession, and show that he feels it by unremitted exertions to 
attain to the highest excellence of which he is capable,— animated, 
in the midst of his toil, chiefly by the great moral recompense 
which every faithful teacher may hope to receive. 

Let every teacher, then, study to improve himself intellectually 
and morally; let him strive to advance in the art of teaching; 
let him watch the growth of mind under his culture and take the 
encouragement which that affords; let him consider the useful- 
ness he may effect and the circumstances which make his calling 
honorable; let him prize the gratitude of his pupils and of their 
parents and friends; and above all, let him. value the approval 
of Heaven, and set a proper estimate upon the rewards which 
another world will unfold to him, — and thus be encouraged to 
toil on in faithfulness and in hope,— till, having finished his 
course, and being gathered to the home of the righteous, he shall 
meet multitudes, instructed by his wise precept, and profited by 
his pure example, who " shall rise up and call him blessed." 



CHAPTER XVII. 

THE SCHOOLMASTER— A DIALOGUE.* 

Dramatis Personap. 
The Schoolmaster. 

Patrons of the School. 
Squire Snyder. Mr. O'Clary. 

Mr. Fosdick. Mr. LeCompte. 

Pupils of the School. 
Jonas Snyder. . Jacques LeCompte. 

William Fosdick. Isaac. 

Patrick O'Clary. And others. 

Scene. 
Interior of a Village Schoolroom. — The Schoolmaster alone. 
Master. {Setting copies.) Well, so here I am again, after an- 
other night's sleep. But, sleep or no sleep, I feel about as much 
fatigued in the morning as I do at night. It is impossible to get 
the cares and anxieties of my profession out of my mind. It 
does seem to me that the parents of some of my pupils are very 
unfeeling ; for I know I have done my very best to keep a good 
school, and, however I may have failed in some instances, I have 
the satisfaction of feeling, in my conscience, that my best 
endeavors have been devoted to my work. A merry lot of copies 
here, to be set before school time. [Looking at his watch.) But 
"a diligent hand will accomplish much;" by the way, that will 
do for a copy for Jonas Snyder— little culprit! he was very idle 
yesterday. (Thinking and busy.) What can that story mean, 



*This dialogue was hastily written for an entertainment at Newburyport, and, 
although it contains expressions not strictly in accord with the prevailing ideas 
of school discipline, it is nevertheless given as originally published, as the present 
volume would be incomplete without it. It illustrates the true teacher with all 
his strength of character, his earnestness, self-control and solicitude for his 
charge— the portrait, in fact, unconsciously self-drawn, of its author. 

(286) 



THE SCHOOLMASTER— A DIALOGUE. 287 

which Mr. Truetell told me this morning? Five or six! who could 
they be? — five or six of the parents of my scholars dreadfully 
offended ! Let me see; what have I done? Nothing, very lately, 
that I recollect. Let's see; yesterday? no, there was nothing 
yesterday, except that I detained the class in geography till they 
got their lessons. Oh, yes, Jonas Snyder was punished for idle- 
ness. But I spoke to him four or five times, and he would do 
nothing but whisper, and whittle his bench ; and when at last he 
half eat up an apple, and threw the rest at Jacob Readslow, I 
thought he deserved it. Let's see; I gave him six claps— three on 
each hand; well, he did not get more than his desserts. {Enter 
one of the scholars, with his books under his arm, walking slowly, 
and eyeing the Master, to his seat. Master still busy, and 
thinking, by and by says,) Isaac, you may come to me. 

[He walks along and says,) Sir! 

Master. Do you remember (placing his pen over bis ear, and 
turning earnestly and portentiously round), whether I punished 
any scholars yesterday? 

Isaac. Yes, sir; you feruled Jone Snyder for playing and 
laughing. 

Master. Did 1 punish anyone else ? 

Isaac. Not as I recollect. 

Master. Think, Isaac; think carefully. 

Isaac. You kept a lot of us after school for not saying our 
lessons— 

Master. [Quickly.) You mean, Isaac, rather, I kept you to 
get your lessons, which you had neglected ? 

Isaac. Yes, sir ; and you made Patrick O'Clary stop and sVeep, 
because he stayed out too late after recess. 

Master. Oh, yes, I remember that. 

Isaac. He was as mad as a hop about it ; he said he meant to 
tell his mother that you made him sweep for nothing. 

Master. Hush! hush! you shouldn't tell tales! Do you 
remember any other punishments ? 

Isaac. No, sir; not yesterday. You hit Jake LeCompte a 
clip across the knuckles, with the cowskin, day before yesterday; 



288 PAGE'S THEORY AND PRACTICE. 

don't you remember? just as he stretched out his hand to hook 
that old rag upon Tom WilHs' collar, you came along behind 
him, and clip went the old whip, right across his fingers, and 
down went the old rag. There, I never was more glad to see any 
thing in my life! Little, dirty, mean fellow!— he's always stick- 
ing things upon fellows; — I saw him once pin an old dirty rag 
upon a man's coat, just as he was putting a letter into the post- 
office ; — I never saw such a fellow ! 

[The other boys coming in gradually, the Master rings his 
little bell, and says,) Boys, come to order, and take your books. 
Now, boys, I wish to see if we can't have a good school to-day. 
Let's see; are we all here? 

Boys. No, sir! No, sir! 

Master. Who is absent? 

Boys. Jone Snyder! Jake LeCompte! Patrick OTlary ! and— 

Master. Speak one at a time, my boys. Don't make confusion, 
to begin with ;— and [looking around them),— oh ! Will Fosdick,— 
only four! 

One of the Boys. Pat 'Clary is late. I saw him down in 
Baker street, poking along !— he always comes late- 
Master. Did he say he was coming ? 

Same Boy. I asked him if he was coming to school, and he 
shook his head, and muttered out something about his mother, 
and I ran along and left him. 

Master. Well, boys; now let us try to have a still school and 
close study to-day, and see if it is not more pleasant to learn than 
to play. [Rises and walks to and fro on the stage.) Take the 
geography lesson, James and Samuel, first thing this morning; 
and Isaac, I don't wish to detain you again to-day. [Loud 
knock at the door.) 

[Enter William Fosdick, walking consequentially up to the 
Master, saying,) Here! father wants to see you at the door! 

(Master turns to go to the door, followed Z)j William, who 
wishes to hear all that's said, and Mr. Fosdick, looking quite 
savage, steps right inside,— the Master politely bowing, with a 
' * good-morning. ' ' ) 



THE SCHOOLMASTER-A DIALOGUE, 289 

Mr. Fosdick. Here, sir ; I want to see you about my boy ! I 
don't like to have you keep him after school every day ; I want 
him at home,— and I should like to have you dismiss him when 
school is done. If he wants lickin', lick him— that's all; but don't 
you keep him here an hour or two every day after school,— I 
don't send him here for that! 

Master. But, my good sir, I have not often detained him ; not 
more than twice within a fort — 

Mr. Fosdick. Well, don't you do it again,— that's all! 

Master. But, sir, I have only detained him to learn the les- 
sons which he might learn in school; and surely, if — 

Mr. Fosdick. Well, well, sir! don't you do it again!— that's 
all I have to say! If he behaves bad, you lick him,— only do it in 
reason;— but when school is done, I want him dismissed ! 

Master. Sir, I do what I conceive to be my duty; and I serve 
all my scholars alike; and while I would be willing to accommo- 
date you, I shall do what I think is my duty. (Gathering spirit 
and gravity, and advancing.) Sir, do I understand you to wish 
me to whip your son for not getting his lesson ? 

Mr. Fosdick. Yes — no — yes— in reason; I don't want my 
children's bones broke! 

Master. (Taking from the desk a cowhide.) Do you prefer 
your son should be whipped to being detained ? 

Fosdick. I don't think not getting hislessons is such a dread- 
ful crime. I never used to get my lessons, and old Master Pep- 
permint never used to lick me, and I am sure he never kept me 
after school; but we used to have schools good for sumfin' in 
them days. Bill, go to your seat, and behave yourself; and 
when school is done, you come home ! That's all I have to say ! 

Master. But stop, my boy ! (Speaking to William, decidedly. ) 
There happen to be two sides to this question ! There is some- 
thing further to be said, before you go to your seat in this 
school. 

Fosdick. What ! you don't mean to turn him out of school, 
do ye? 

(Somebody knocks.) 

T. p.— 19 



290 PAGE'S THEORY AND PRACTICE. 

(A boy steps to the door, and in steps Mr. O'Clary, who, 
approaching Mr. Fosdick, says,) Is it you that's the school- 
master sure ? It's I that's after spaking to the schoolmaster. 
(Bowing.) 

Fosdick. No; I'm no schoolmaster. 

Master. What is your wish, sir? 

Mr. O^Clary. I wants to spake with the schoolmaster, I do, 
sir. {Bows.) 

Master. Well, sir {rapping to keep the boys still, who are dis- 
posed to laugh), I am the schoolmaster. What is your wish? 

Mr. O'Clary. Why, sir, my little spalpeen of a son goes to this 
school, he does; and he says he's made to swape every day, he 
is; and it's all for nothing, he tells me; and sure I don't like it, 
I don't; and I'm kim to complain to ye, I have! It's Patrick 
O'Clary that I'm spaking uv; and it's I that's his father, I be; 
his father, Paddy O'Clary from Cork, it is. 

Master. Well, sir, he has never swept but once, I believe; and 
that, surely, was not without a good reason. 

Mr. O'Clary. But he tills a different story, he does; and I 
never knew him till but one lie in my life, I didn't ; and that was 
as good as none. But the little spalpeen shall be after tilling his 
own stowry, he shall; for it's he that's waiting in the entry, and 
will till ye no lie, at all, at all— upon that ye may depind; though 
it's his father that says it, and sure!— (Ca 77s.)— Patrick! Pat- 
rick !! Patrick !!! My dear, here's your father wants ye to come 
in, and till Master how it's you that's kept to swape ivry day, 
and it's all for nothing, it is! Come in, I say, in a jiffy! (Pat- 
rick, scratching his head, enters.) Here's your father, dear! 
now till your Master,— and till the truth — didn't ye till your 
mither that ye had to swape ivery day, for a month to come, 
and sure? 

Master. Now tell the truth, Patrick. 

Patrick. {Looking at his father.) No; I niver said no such 
words, and sure! I said how I's kept to swape yisterday, for 
staying out too late; and that's all I said 'bout it, at all, at all. 

Mr. O'Clary. " Cush la mac ree ! " Little sonny, how you talk I 



THE SCHOOLMASTER- A DIALOGUE. • 291 

He's frightened, he is, and sure ! ( Turning to Mr. Fosdick.) He's 
always bashful before company, he is. But, Master, it's I that 
don't like to have him made to swape the school, indade, and if 
you can do nothing else, I shall be in sad taking, I shall, and 
sure! If you should be after bating him, I should make no com- 
plaint: for I bates him myself, wheniver he lies to his mither— a 
little spalpeen that he is ! But I can't bear to have him made to 
do the humbling work of swaping, at all, at all; and it's I that 
shall make a "clish ma claver," an' it's not stopped— indade I 
shall ! (Somebody knocks. ) 

(Isaac steps to the door, and returning says,) Esq. Snyder 
wishes to see you, sir. 

Master. (Smiling.) Well, ask Mr. Snyder to step in ; we may as 
well have a regular court of it! 

(Isaac waits upon him in, leading Jonas, with his hands poul- 
ticed.) 

Master. (Smiling.) Good morning, Mr. Snyder; walk in, sir! 

Mr. Snyder. (Rather gentlemanly.) I hope you will excuse my 
interrupting your school; but I called to inquire what Jonas, 
here, could have done, that you bruised him up at such a rate. 
Poor little fellow ! he came home, taking on as if his heart would 
break ! and both his hands swelled up bigger than mine ! and he 
said you had been beating him, for nothing! I thought I'd 
come up and inquire into it; for I don't hold to this banging and 
abusing children, and especially when they haven't done any- 
thing; though I'm a friend to good order. 

Master. I was not aware that I punished him very severely, 
sir. 

Mr. Snyder. Oh ! it was dreadfully severe ! Why, the poor lit- 
tle fellow's hands pained him so that his mother had to poultice 
them, and sit up with him all night! and this morning she 
wanted to come up to school with him herself; but I told her I 
guessed she better let me come. Jonas, do your hands ache 
now, dear? 

Jonas. [Holding them both out together.) Oh! dreadfully! 
They feel as if they were in the fire ! 



292 • PAGE'S THEORY AND PRACTICE. 

Mr. Snyder. Well, dear, keep composed ; don't cry, dear. Now, 
sir [addressing the Master), this was all for nothing! 

Master. No, sir! It was for something, I am thinking! 

Jonas. I say I did not do nothing! So there now ! 

(Somebody knocks.) 

Master. Gentlemen, sit down. [Looking perplexed.) Sit 
down, sir. Give me a little time, and I'll endeavor to set the 
matter right. [All sitting down but the boys.) 

Mr. Snyder. Why, I don't wish to make a serious matter of 
it. I shan't prosecute you. I was only going to ask if you 
couldn't devise some other kind of punishment than pommeling. 
If you'd made him stop after school, or set him to sweeping the 
house, or scouring the benches, or even whipped him with a cow- 
hide or switch-stick, I should not have complained; but I don't 
like this beating boys. 

[Knocking again.) 

Master. Isaac, go and see who is at the door. 

[Exit Isaac; enter Mr. LeCompte and Jacques.) 

Mr. LeCompte. Ha ! Monsieur Tutor. I have one ver leetle 
complainte to make against your vot you call him — your discip- 
leen? 

Master. Ah! indeed, and what is that, sir? 

Mr. LeCompte. Why mys boy have not dse right in-cli-na- 
tshon for dse shastisement vot you give him. 

Master. Very likely, sir. Very few boys have an inclination for 
a chastisement. 

Mr. LeCompte. You see, Monsieur, de— vot you call his name 
-de furule vot you use on him wizout ceremunie, is for certain- 
ment not so good for my boy as a leetle parswashon would be. 

Master. But, sir, I cannot spend tinie in persuading boys to 
do right. I find it necessary to make them afraid to do wrong; 
and as your son is so full of mischievous pranks, I find that I only 
can restrain him by a free use of proper punishment. 

Mr. LeCompte. I has not seen de mischeeve in him vot you 
speak of. He is von [scratches his head to think of the word) 
— von— vot you call a man vot has not drank dse wine? 



THE SCHOOLMASTER-A DIALOGUE. 293 

Master. Sober, I suppose you mean. 

Mr. LeCompte. Ah, dat's ze word— von ver sobar boy, and 
zerefore does not deserve de cas-ti-ga-tshon vot you gives him for 
mischeeve. 

(Jacques pins an old rag upon the father^ s coat and steps back 
and laughs. The other boys point to the Frenchman and laugh.) 

Mr. Fosdick. Mr. LeCompte, what's that you have pinned to 
your coat? 

Mr. LeCompte. On me coat? [Looks round.) On detail of 
my coat, von ver bad boy pinned him dere. Who vas it ? 

Fosdick. Your hopeful son, Jacques. 

Mr. LeCompte. Jacques, you be von grand leetle scoundrel 
and deserve all the shastisement vot the tutor gives you. ( To 
the Master.) If you will lend me de instrument vot you shastise 
with, I'll teach him to have respect for his father. 

Master. Be calm, sir; be good enough to sit down and I'll 
endeavor to define my position. And now, gentlemen [bowing), 
I think we may each of us begin to see the beauty of variety, 
especially in the matter of opinion. That you may all understand 
the whole case, I will state in a few words the facts, as they actu- 
ally occurred. Day before yesterday, our young friend Jacques 
[pointing to him) was playing his favorite trick of hanging his 
rag signal upon a schoolmate, after the fashion in which he has 
here so filially served his father within a few minutes; and stand- 
ing near him at the time, with my whip in hand, I could not resist 
the temptation to salute his mischievous knuckles with a well- 
directed stroke, which, however effectually it may have cut his 
own fingers and his father's sensibilities, it seems has not cut off 
his ruling propensity. Yesterday was emphatically a day of sin- 
ning on my part. Jonas Snyder, whose little hands have swelled 
to such enormous magnitude, was often reproved for constant 
idleness; and after all this, when he threw a portion of an apple 
at a more industrious boy, thus disturbing many of those well- 
disposed boys, he was called and feruled, receiving six strokes- 
three on each hand— with the rule I now show you. Little Pat- 
rick O'Clary was required to sweep the schoolroom floor for a 



294 PAGE'S THkVRY AND PRACTICE. 

strong instance of tardiness at recess; and this punishment was 
given, because I did not wish to inflict a severer one upon so 
small a lad. And last, this little fellow (pointing to William 
Fosdick) was detained, in common with seven others, to learn a 
lesson w^hich he neglected to learn at the proper time. 

Such are the facts. And yet each of you has assured me that 
I have incurred your displeasure by using a punishment you dis- 
approve, and "all for nothing." You have each one taken the 
trouble to come to this room, to render my task— already suffi- 
ciently perplexing— still more so, by giving parental support to 
childish complaints, and imparting your censure, in no measured 
terms, upon the instructor of your children. But this is a most 
interesting case. You all happen to be here together, and you 
thus give me the opportunity I have long wished to show you 
your own inconsistencies. 

It is easy to complain of your teacher ; but perhaps either of 
you, in your wisdom, would find it not quite so easy to take my 
place and escape censure. How would either of you have got 
along in the present instance? Mr. Fosdick, who is displeased 
with detention after school, would have, according to his own 
recommendation, resorted to "licking," either with ferule or 
whip. In this case, he would have incurred the censure of his 
friends, Esq. Snyder and Mr. LeCompte. The " 'Squire," in turn, 
would have raised the displeasure of both his friends, by resort- 
ing to his favorite mode of detaining and cowhiding. Mr. O'Clary 
would give the "spalpeens" a "bating," as he says, after his 
own peculiar fashion, with which the 'Squire and Mr. LeCompte 
could not have been over-much pleased ; — and Mr. LeCompte — 
a}^, Mr. LeCompte — if we may judge from the exhibition he has 
just given us, w^ould have displeased even himself, by proving to 
be what he most of all things detests— a champion of the cow- 
hide. But what is a little curious, as it appears, is, that while I 
have not carried out the favorite scheme of either of you,— which, 
we have already seen, w^ould be objectionable to each of the 
others,— but have adopted a variety of punishments, and the 
very variety which your own collective suffrage would fix upon, I 



THE SCHOOL MASTER-A DIALOGUE. 295 

have got myself equally deep into hot water; and the grand 
question is now, what shall I do ? If I take the course suggested 
by you collectively, the result is the same. I see no other way 
but to take my own course, performing conscientiously my duties, 
in their time and after their manner, and then to demand of you, 
and all others, the right of being sustained ! 

Mr. Snyder. Well, gentlemen, my opinion is, that we have 
been tried and condemned by our own testimony, and there is no 
appeal. My judgment approves the Master; and hereafter 1 shall 
neither hear nor make any more complaints. Jonas (turning to 
Jonas), my son, if the master is willing, you may go home and 
tell your mother to take off those poultices, and then do you 
come to school and do as you are told ; and if I hear of any more 
of your complaints, I will double the dose you may receive at 
school. 

Mr. O'Clary. And sure, Master, Paddy O'Clary is not the man 
to resist authority in the new country; and bless your sowl, if 
you'll make my little spalpeen but a good boy, it's I that will 
kindly remember the favor, though ye make him swape until nixt 
Christmas! Here, Patrick, down upon the little knees of your 
own, and crave the Master's forgiveness. 

Master. No, sir; that I shall not allow. I ask no one to kneel 
to me. I shall only require that he correct his past faults, and 
obey me in future. 

Mr. O'Clary. It's an ungrateful child he would be, if ever 
again he should be after troubling so kind a master. St. Patrick 
bless ye! ( Taking little Pat by the hand, they go out. ) 

Mr. Fosdick. (Taking the Master by the hand, pleasantly.) 
Sir, 1 hope I shall profit by this day's lesson. I have only to say, 
that I am perfectly satisfied we are all wrong; and that is, per- 
haps, the best assurance I can give you, that I think you are 
right. That's all I have to say. 
(Exeunt.) 



CHAPTER XVIII. 

THE LEGAL STATUS OF THE TEACHER. 

[From Circular of Information of the Bureau of Education, compiled by Lyndon 
A. Smith, A.B.,LL.M.] 

License prerequisite to a valid contract.— A contract to 
employ a person to teach who has not a certificate or license is 
void in Illinois,* Indiana,! and Minnesota ;$ and procuring a cer- 
tificate after entering into such an agreement does not render it 
a valid contract. In Ohio it has been decided that a statutory 
provision similar to the one prohibiting the employment of unli- 
censed teachers in the States above mentioned does not render 
invalid a contract of employment entered into with a teacher 
before he obtains a certificate, provided he obtains it before com- 
mencing to teach. The court said :ll "The law forbids the employ- 
ment of a teacher who has not a certificate. The teacher is not 
'employed,' within the meaning and intent of this provision, 
until he engages in the discharge of his duties as teacher. The 
mischief intended to be guarded against was the teaching of a 
school by an incompetent person, and not the making of the con- 
tract by an incompetent person." In Vermont, if a person com- 
mences teaching without a certificate and continues to teach after 
obtaining one, he is considered to have made a new contract, 
commencing at the time when the certificate was obtained and 
having the same terms as the one under which teaching was 
begun. § In Minnesota a person commenced teaching under a 
verbal contract. He taught three weeks, then obtained a certiti- 

* Wells V. People, 71 111., 532; Stevenson r. School Directors, 87 111., 255; School 
Directors v. Jennings, 10 111. App., 643. 

+ Putnam v. Town of Irvington, 69 Ind., 80 ; Butler v. Haines, 79 Ind., 575. 

I Ryan v. School District 13, 27 Minn., 433. See Blondon v. Moses, 29 Hun (N, Y.), 
606. 

(I School District 2 of Oxford v. Dilman, 22 Ohio St., 194. 

\S Scott V. School District 2 of Fairfax, 46 Vt., 452. 

(296) 



THE LEGAL STATUS OF THE TEACHER. 297 

cate and made a written contract to run three months from the 
time he commenced teaching. It was held that he was entitled to 
wages at the stipulated rate after the certificate was obtained 
and the written contract made, and to no remuneration for the 
previous three weeks.* In an Illinois case a certificate was not 
obtained until the middle of the term. A new contract was 
entered into at that time to pay the teacher double wages for the 
remainder of the term. This was considered an attempt to do 
indirectly what there was no power to do directly; and therefore 
the contract was held void, as w^as the original contract.! 

Contracts.— A contract is to be construed in reference to con- 
temporaneous laws and usages. For example, in Michigan the 
law directs that a contract of hiring to teach " shall require the 
teacher to keep a correct list of the pupils and the age of each 
attending the school, and the number of days each pupil is pres- 
ent, and to furnish the director with a correct copy of the same 
at the close of school." The court thought that it could not be 
doubted these requirements, though not mentioned in his con- 
tract, imposed upon the teacher of every public district school 
the duty of compliance with them, and that they become a part 
of a teacher's contract, whether inserted in it or not.$ The con- 
tract of a teacher is for his own personal services.il The nature 
and quality of those- services were admirably described by Judge 
Worden in an Indiana case. In giving the opinion of the court, 
he said:§ "A teacher doubtless, like a lawyer, surgeon or phj^si- 
cian, when he undertakes an employment, impliedly agrees that 
he will bestow upon the service a reasonable degree of learning, 
skill, and care. When he accepts an employment as teacher 
in any given school, he agrees by implication that he has the 
learning necessary to enable him to teach the branches that are 
to be taught therein, as well as that he has the capacity in a 
reasonable degree of imparting that learning to others. He 



* McKinney v. School District 45 of Dakota Co., 20 Minn., 72. 

f Wells V. People, 71 111., 532. 

X Everett v. School District 2 of Cannon, 30 Mich., 249, 252. 

II School Directors v. Hudson, 88 111., 563. 

§City of Crawfordsville v. Hays. 42 Ind., 209, 210. 



298 PAGE'S THEORY AND PRACTICE. 

agrees, also, that he will exercise a reasonable degree of care and 
diligence in the advancement of his pupils in their studies, in pre- 
serving harmony, order, and discipline in the school, and that he 
will himself conform as near as may be to such reasonable rules 
and regulations as may be established by competent authority 
for the government of the school. He also agrees, as we think, 
by a necessary implication, that while he continues in such 
employment his moral conduct shall be in all respects exemplary 
and beyond just reproach." 

The hiring of a substitute by a teacher under any ordinary 
circumstances is a breach of contract, though the competency of 
the substitute is unquestioned.* A teacher may not ordinarily 
absent himself by leave of individual members of the school 
board.! 

A teacher's contract is oftentimes binding upon a district 
though it is irregular in some respect, as when it was made with 
part of a board,? or was verbally made with a subcommittee 
instructed by the board to employ a teacher. || The law implies a 
contract from the doing and accepting of work, and a district 
cannot, on the ground that he has not complied with the law 
requiring a written contract,! have the benefit of a teacher's 
services without remunerating him. Where there is a written con- 
tract it cannot be orally contradicted.il A contract with a town- 
ship board to teach in a subdistrict over which a lower court has 
decided that the board has control,* is not invalidated by the 
reversal of that decision by the supreme court.** Contracts with 
cle facto officers are binding upon the body they represent ;tt but 



* School Directors v. Hudson, 88 111., 5G3. 

+ state V. Leonard, 3 Teun. Chan., 177. 

JAdkins I'. Mitchell, 67 111., 511. 

II Wilson V. Board of Education. G3 Mo., 1G7. 

$ Jones V. School District 47 of Neosho County, 8 Kans.,362; Mouaghan v. School 
District, 38 Wis., 100. 

IT Mann v. Independent School District of Le Grand, 52 Iowa, 130. 

** Hall & Julius V. District Township of Pleasant Valley, 41 Iowa, 494. 

-hi School District 25 of Hall County v. Cowee, 9 Nebr.,53; Woodbury v. Knox, 74 
Me., 462; Burditt ?'. Barry,6 Hun (N.Y.), 657. " The doctrine is every where declared 
that the acts of de facto officers as distinguished from the acts of mere usurpers, 
are valid." 1 Dillon's Municipal Corporations, $ 276. 



THE LEGAL STATUS OF THE TEACHER. 299 

contracts entered into with a number of persons acting as a 
board are not binding upon the school district when there is in 
existence at the same time another acting board w^ho are so de 
jure and who have notified the persons contracting with the 
other board not to carry out their contracts. Which of the 
boards is such of right is a question for the courts to decide.* 
The part performance of an oral contract, in a case where the 
law requires a written one, is a ratification of it and renders a 
district liable for any breach of it.t There is no contract, express 
or implied, between a teacher and a pupil, and, in the absence of 
trespass, the latter cannot sue the former for refusing to hear his 
recitations. The teacher's 'contract is with the directors alone. t 
A minor who possesses the essential qualifications in regard to 
moral character, learning, and ability, and who has obtained 
the requisite certificate, may, with the assent of his parents, enter 
into a valid contract to teach school. A father is charged with 
certain duties as respects his child, as education, support, and 
protection, and, as some compensation for these duties, he has a 
right to claim the earnings of his child in the absence of proof of 
relinquishment, II 

Recovery of wages. When impossible. — A teacher cannot 
recover for services rendered after the appropriation out of which 



* Genesee Township v. McDonald, 98 Pa. St.. 444. 

i Cook ('. Independent School District of North McGregor, 40 Iowa, 444. A dis- 
senting opinion by Beck, J., held that a verbal contract, being unauthorized by- 
law, was a nullity and could not be made of effect by subsequent ratification. 

I Stuckey v. Churchman, 2 111. App., 584. 

II Monaghan v. School District 1 of Randall, 38 Wis., 100. The following notes will 
be of value in connection with this decision : 

(1) " In general, when a contract is not manifestly for the benefit of an infant, 
he may avoid it as well in equity as at law, and when it can never be for his benefit 
it is utterly void." Schouler's Domestic Relations, $ 401. 

(2) "All other things being equal, the father is actually entitled to the value of 
his child's labor and services until the latter becomes of age." Ibid, $ 252. 

(3) "The parent may emancipate his child, and this may be done by refusing 
him support, or denying him a home, or compelling him to labor abroad for his 
own living." Taylor on Infancy and Coverture, p. 200. 

(4) "And if the parent authorize a third person to employ and pay the child, 
payment to the child and not to the parent will be a sufficient discharge. Such an 
agreement may be in express terms or it may be implied from circumstances." 
Schouler's Domestic Relations. *S 252a. 



300 PAGE'S THEORY AND PRACTICE. 

payment of them must be made is exhausted when the law of the 
place "is clear that no contract or debt can be created without the 
authority of the councils and an appropriation to meet it . "* \y ages 
cannot be recovered on avoid contract. In Iowa a contract must 
be approved by the president of the school board ; and where he 
refused to do so a teacher was not allowed to recover although she 
proceeded to teach under control of the subdirector hiring her 
and completed her term of instruction. f If a teacher is discharged 
on the ground of incompetency he must use all proper means for 
his vindication and reinstatement before the courts will entertain 
a suit for the recovery of wages.$ Then the question of compe- 
tency will be one for the jury.ll Of course he cannot recover if 
found incompetent ; for, "if a teacher, although he has been em- 
ployed for a definite length of time, proves to be incompetent and 
unable to teach the branches of instruction he has been employed 
to teach, either from a lack of learning or from an utter want of 
capacity to impart his learning to others, or if in any other 
respect he fails to perform the obligations resting upon him as 
such teacher, whether arising from the express terms of his con- 
tract, or by necessary implication, he has broken the agreement 
on his part."§ For teaching done in defiance of a decision of 
removal no right whatever accrues to compensation out of the 
public fund. II In a Mississippi case a teacher recovered wages for 
services rendered after the revocation of his license by the county 
superintendent in opposition to the wishes of the contracting 
board of trustees, the court saying that "after the vacation of 
the certificate the relator was not competent to make a new 
engagement to teach, but could continue to execute an existing 



* Perrott v. Philadelphia, 83 Pa. St., 479. 

+ Place r. District Township of Colfax, 56 Iowa, 573. Adams, C. J., dissented 
on the grounds that it was the ministerial duty of the president of the board to 
approve the contract and that the district, by receiving the teacher's services, 
became liable for her wages. 

t Kirkpatrick V. Independent School District of Liberty, 53 Iowa, 585; Pierce t'. 
Beck, 61 Ga.,413. 

II McCutcheon v. Windsor, 55 Mo., 149; Ewing v. School Directors, 2 111. App.,458. 

$City of Crawfordsville v. Hays, 42 Ind., 210. 

IT Pierce v. Beck, 61 Ga., 413. 



THE LEGAL STATUS OF THE TEACHER. 301 

contract, unless the local trustees co-operated with the superin- 
tendent to vacate the contract."* 

The failure to make required reports destroys the right to 
recover wages, and a statute requiring teachers to make specified 
entries in a register applies to a principal of a number of schools, 
although he has done no actual teaching.! If the omission of 
entries is through no fault of the teacher, it will not prevent the 
recovery of wages. This rule was stated as follows in a case in 
which a teacher did not complete her school and made none of 
the entries required by statute to be made at the close of a 
school :$ "The close of school there meant must be the close of 
the term of school ; for the answers to the inquiries required to 
be entered relate to the whole term, and could not be answered 
till the close of it. If the school stopped before the close of the 
term through the fault of the teacher, then the plaintiff would 
not be entitled to recover, whether she made the necessary entries 
in the register or not; but if the prudential committee, by his 
own conduct, without her fault, prevented the close of the term 
being reached by her, so she could make the entries, then the 
want of them would not prevent the recovery of the wages." 

When possible. — A teacher can recover wages for services 
rendered while he holds a certificate irregularly given. The cer- 
tificate is in the nature of a commission, and cannot be attacked 
collaterally, though it does not correspond to the form in which 
the statute says it may be drawn and was given without an 
examination of the candidate.il 

In a Nebraska case a teacher was without a certificate three 
months during a term of nine months and recovered wages. " It 



* Jamison v. Senter, 56 Miss., 194. This decision was under a law providing that 
a county superintendent alone might revoke a license but could annul a contract 
only Avith the concurrence of the trustees. 

f School Commissioners of Alleghany Co. v. Adams, 43 Md., 349. 

I Scott I'. School District 2 of Fairfax, 46 Vt., 452, 457. Under an indictment 
charging a school teacher with perjury in swearing to his monthly report to the 
county superintendent, which represented that certain named pupils each 
attended school a certain number of days, whereas none attended as stated, he 
can be convicted on evidence that one did not attend. Page v. State, 59 Miss., 474. 

II School District v. Sterricker, 86 111., 595. In Missouri the forging of a teacher's 
certificate is a penal offense. State v. Grant, 74 Mo., 33. 



302 PAGE'S THEORY AND PRACTICE. 

is true," said the court, ''that the statute prohibits the school 
board from paying from the school fund any but qualified 
teachers and makes a certificate or diploma, issued in the manner 
directed, the only evidence of such qualification. The prohibition 
of the statutejs, however, upon the district board and not upon 
the teacher."* 

If a teacher lawfully employed is dismissed without just cause, 
he may recover wages for the whole time for which he was em- 
ployed. The court in Wisconsin laid down the rule as follows: 
"Unless the discharge of the teacher be justified by proof of the 
fact that he is not properly performing his contract on his part, 
the district becomes liable to the teacher for such damages as he 
may sustain by such discharge in the loss of wages for the residue 
of his term."t Where a teacher was kept from rendering services 
by the burning of the schoolhouse, but was ready to teach when- 
ever a place should be provided and filled out her register at the 
end of the time specified, it was held that full wages could be 
recovered.! 

A teacher can recover wages for time included in legal holidays. 
Chief Justice Campbell, of Michigan, said in a recent case:|| "In 
regard to deductions for holidays w^e are of opinion that school 
management should always conform to those decent usages 
which recognize the propriety of omitting to hold public exercises 
on recognized holidays, and that it is not lawful to impose forfei- 
tures or deductions for such proper suspension of labor. Schools 
should conform to what may fairly be expected of all institutions 
in civilized communities. All contracts for teaching during peri- 
ods mentioned must be construed of necessity as subject to such 
days of vacation, and public policy as well as usage requires that 
there should be no penalty laid on such observances." If a 



* School District v. Estes, 13 Nebr,, 52. 

f Scott V. Joint School District, 51 Wis., 554, 557. A teacher can only recover as 
damages the difference between the stipulated wages and what he earned, or 
might have earned, at a similar employment in his own vicinity during the time 
covered by his contract. See 2 Greenleaf on Evidence, $ 161a; 2 Chitty on Con- 
tracts, 11th Am. ed,, p. 855, note. 

t Cashen v. School District 12 of Berlin, 50 Vt., 30. 

II School District 4 of Marathon v. Gage, 39 Mich., 480. 



THE LEGAL STATUS OF THE TEACHER. 303 

teacher is employed for a definite time, and during the period of 
his employment the district officers close the schools on account 
of the prevalence of contagious disease, and keep them closed for 
a time, the teacher continuing ready to perform his contract, he 
is entitled to full wages during such period.* Wages have been 
recovered by a teacher who stipulated in the contract of employ- 
ment that she would not instruct certain children in the district,! 
and by a teacher who was obliged to give up her school because 
the committee insisted on her allowing a disobedient and unman- 
ageable boy to attend. $ The court said : "The teacher could not 
perform the duties of her employment without maintaining 
proper and necessary discipline in the school, and when all her 
other means for doing so failed in respect to the boy it was her 
right, and might be her duty, to expel him, to save the rest of 
the school from being injured by his presence. It was not the 
duty of the teacher, under the contract, to teach the school with- 
out maintaining proper and necessary discipline in it; and if the 
committee insisted that she should have the boy there, when she 
could not have him there and have the discipline too, it was 
equivalent to insisting that she should teach the school without 
the discipline, which she was not bound to do." 

Dismissal.— If a teacher in a public school, although employed 
for a definite time, fails to perform the obligations resting upon 
him , he has broken the agreement on his part, and the trustees 
are clearly authorized to dismiss him from such employment.il 
When the school law empowers a city board of education to em- 
ploy teachers and remove them at pleasure, the provision enters 
into and forms a part of the contract with a teacher for his serv- 
ices for a specified period; he may be discharged before its expira- 
tion, notwithstanding the terms of his employment. § But where 
the powder of discharge is limited it ought not to be exercised until 



* Dewey v. Union District of Alpena, 43 Mich., 480. 
f State V. Blain, 36 Ohio St., 429. Johnson, J., dissented. 

X Scott V. School District 2 of Fairfax, 46 Vt,,452; contra, Parker v. School Dis- 
trict, 5 Lea (Tenn.), 525. 

II City of Crawfordsville v. Hays, 42 lud., 200 ; Bays v. State, 6 Nebr,, 167. 
$ Jones V. Nebraska City,! Nebr., 176. 



304 PAGE'S THEORY AND PRACTICE. 

notice has been given the teacher and proper testimony heard 
against him.* If, at a hearing, he does not object to the suffi- 
ciency of the notice, he will not be allowed to do so afterward. t 
It has been held, generally, that the power to discharge teachers 
could not be enlarged by stipulations introduced into the con- 
tract of hiring.t A school board in Wisconsin included in such a 
contract the clause "We reserve the right to close the school at 
any time if not satisfactory to us." The court, in commenting 
on it, said: II "We think the good order and usefulness of the 
schools would be greatly prejudiced by holding that the boards 
had such power. If the power claimed for the board in this case 
exists and may be enforced, then the public schools must be 
taught to suit the whims, caprices, and peculiar notions of the 
hiring board, and not as the teacher, in the conscientious dis- 
charge of his duty, should teach the same." 

In New York the State superintendent has general supervision 
and direction of the normal schools, and it is one of his discre- 
tionary duties to approve the hiring of teachers for them. It has 
been decided that these powers do not authorize him to qualify 
his approval with the words "To continue in force during the 
pleasure of the board and the superintendent;" for "it is not 
within the power of the superintendent, by annexing conditions 
to his approval of the employment, to change the law regulating 
the discharge of the teachers of these schools. "§ 

In Kansas a school district board employed a school teacher, 
and the contract of employment contained, among others, a 
stipulation that, if by the inability or neglect of the said A (the 
teacher) the interests of the school shall suffer, the district board 
shall have full power to annul this contract after one month's 
written notice. The court, the chief justice dissenting, held that 
the stipulation was valid, notwithstanding a clause in the school 



* Morley v. Power, 5 Lea (Tenn.), 691. 
+ Woodbury v. Knox, 74 Me., 462. 

I Tripp V. School District, 50 Wis., 651; People i-. Hyde, 89 N. Y. App.,11; Arm- 
strong V. School District, 28 Kans., 345; Horton, C. J., dissenting. 

II Tripp V. School District, 50 Wis., 651. 

§ People ex rel. Gilmour v. Hyde et al., 89 N. Y, App., 11. 



THE LEGAL STATUS OF THE TEACHER. 305 

law providing that the district board in conjunction with the 
county superintendent may dismiss a teacher for incompetency, 
cruelty, negligence, or immorality, and that under the contract 
the school district board might alone, without any formal trial, 
and not in conjunction with the county superintendent, dismiss 
the teacher for incompetence and negligence from which the inter- 
ests of the school suffer. "The object of the statutes,'' says the 
court,* "was simply to provide that the school district should 
not so bind itself by contract that a school teacher could not be 
discharged at any time by the school board acting in conjunction 
with the county superintendent, for incompetency, cruelty, negli- 
gence, or immorality; and it was not intended to prohibit the 
school board from making other provisions for the discharge of 
an incompetent, cruel, negligent, or immoral teacher." 

Complaints against candidates for teachers' positions. — 
A communication made by persons interested in a particular 
school to the superintendent having jurisdiction over it for the 
sole purpose of preventing him from issuing a license to teach the 
school to a particular individual on the ground that he was of 
bad moral character and wholly unfit to teach and have the care 
of a district school, is a privileged communication, and was 
abundantly justified by proof that he was an habitual blas- 
phemer and profane person and an open violater of the Sabbath. f 

The court said :$ " We do not think any superintendent would 
need vindication for being dissatisfied with the moral character 
of a teacher who has the faults complained of by these parties 
who opposed the licensing of plaintiff. A superintendent who 
should subject young children to such influences would be very 
censurable." The right to remonstrate must not be made the 
means of gratifying malice and enmity, and inquiry may be made 
as to the motives and private purposes of petitioners.il 

Rules and regulations.— Every student upon his admission 



* Armstrong v. School District, 28 Kans,,345; following School District v. Col- 
Vin, 10 Kaus., 283. 

+ Weiman v. Mabee, 45 Mich., 484. 
t Ibid, p. 486. 

II Van Arsdale v. Laverty, 69 Pa. St., 103. 
T. p.— 20 



306 PAGE'S THEORY AND PRACTICE. 

into an institution of learning impliedly or expressly promises to 
submit to and be governed by all the necessary and proper rules 
and regulations which have been or thereafter may be adopted 
for the government of the institution.* Rules for the good con- 
duct of a school are not invalidated because the board making 
them (though it must record votes, orders, and proceedings) does 
not adopt them formally and record them.f Courts will interfere 
to prevent the enforcement by a school board of any rule which 
manifestly reaches beyond their sphere of action, and relates to 
subjects in nowise connected with the management or successful 
operation of the school, or which is plainly calculated to retard 
the leading objects of legislation on educational affairs ;$ or, as 
another court expressed it, which is found to be unauthorized, 
against common right, or palpably unreasonable.il 

Regulations respecting studies.— Under the power to pre- 
scribe necessary rules and regulations for the management and 
government of schools, directors (or trustees) may require of 
pupils prompt attendance, diligence in study, proper deportment, 
and classification with respect to the branches of study they are 
respectively pursuing, and with respect to proficiency or degree of 
advancement in those branches. § The following quotation is 
from an exposition of this doctrine in an Illinois caseiH "In the 
performance of their duty in carrying the law into effect the 
directors may prescribe proper rules and regulations for the gov- 
ernment of the schools of their district and enforce them. They 
may, no doubt, classify the scholars, regulate their studies aiid 
their deportment, the hours to be taught, besides the perform- 



* state ex rel. Stallard v. White ct ah, 82 lud., 286: s. c, 42 Am. Rep., 496, 

+ Russell V. Lyimfield, 116 Mass., 365. 

t King V. Jefferson City School Board, 71 Mo., 628; s. c.,36 Am. Rep., 499. 

II State V.White, 82 Ind., 286; s. c, 42 Am. Rep., 496. 

$ Trustees of Schools v. People, 87 111. ,303; s.c.,29 Am. Rep., 55. In Illinois, town- 
ship high school trustees and district directors have power to adopt and enforce 
all necessary rules and regulations for the management and government of the 
schools; to direct what branches of study shall be taught, etc. Rev. Stat. 1880, p. 
1377. 

IT Rulison V. Post, 79 111., 567, 570. This case and the preceding one decided that a 
rule compelling a pupil to pursue a study against the will of his father was not 
reasonable. 



THE LEGAL STATUS OF THE TEACHER. 307 

ance of other duties necessary to promote the success and secure 
the well being of such schools. But all such rules and regula- 
tions must be reasonable and calculated to promote the objects 
of the law: the conferring of such an education [one which in- 
cludes the branches required by law] npon all, free of charge. 
The law having conferred upon each child of proper age the 
right to be taught the enumerated branches, any rule or regula- 
tion which, by its enforcement, would tend to hinder or deprive 
the child of this right cannot be sustained." In Ohio it has 
been decided that authority to make and enforce- all necessary 
rules and regulations for schools, and to determine "the various 
studies and parts of studies" in which instruction shall be given 
in the departments of the schools, included the power in a board 
of education to adopt a rule that if any pupil, unless excused, 
should fail to be prepared with a rhetorical exercise at the time 
appointed he should be immediately suspended.* 

Regulations respecting attendance.— Regulations discrim- 
inating against the attendance of a certain class of inhabitants 
entitled to the privileges of the schools are unauthorized and 
cannot be sustained.! Rules requiring regularity of attendance 
are reasonable. Suspension for six half-days' absense in four 
consecutive weeks has been upheld in Missouri ;$ for six half-days' 
absence and two instances of tardiness in the same time, in Iowa;ii 
and for a single day's unexcusecl absence to attend a religious 
service, in Vermont. § Judge Beck, in giving the opinion of the 
court in Iowa, said i "It requires but little experience in the 
instruction of children and youth to convince any one that the 
only means which will assure progress in their studies is to secure 
their attendance, the application of the powers of their minds to 
the studies in which they are instructed. Unless the pupil's mind 
is open to receive instruction, vain will be the effort of the teacher 



*Se\vell V. Board of Education of Defiance, 29 Ohio St., 89. 
+ State V. White, 82 lud., 278 ; s. C, 42 Am. Rep., 496. 

I King V. Jefferson City School Board, 71 Mo., 628 ; s. c, 36 Am. Rep., 499. 

II Burdick v. Babcock,-31 Iowa, 562, Miller, J., dissenting. 
§ Ferriter v. Tyler, 48 Vt., 444 ; s. c, 21 Am. Rep., 133. 

II Burdick v. Babcock, 31 Iowa, 566. 



308 PAGE'S THEORY AND PRACTICE. ' 

to lead him forward in learning. This application of the mind in 
children is secured by interesting them in their studies. But this 
cannot be done if they are at school one day and at home the 
next, if a recitation is omitted or a lesson left unlearned at the 
whim or convenience of parents. In order to interest a child he 
must be able to understand the subject in which he is instructed. 
If he has fajled to prepare previous lessons he will not understand 
the one which the teacher explains to him. If he is required to 
do double duty, and prepare a previous lesson, omitted in order 
to make a visit or do an errand at home, with the lesson of the 
day, he will fail to master them and become discouraged. The 
inevitable consequence is that his interest flags and he is unable 
to apply the powers of his mind to the studies before him. The 
rule requiring constant and prompt attendance is for the good 
of the pupil and to secure the very objects the law had in view 
in establishing public schools. It is therefore reasonable and 
proper. 

"In another view it is required by the best interests of all the 
pupils of the school. Irregular attendance of pupils not only 
retards their own progress, but interferes with the progress of 
those pupils who may be regular and prompt. The whole class 
may be annoyed and hindered by the imperfect recitations of one 
who has failed to prepare his lessons on account of absence. 
The class must endure and suffer the blunders, promptings, and 
reproofs of the irregular pupil, all resulting from failure to pre- 
pare lessons which should have been studied when the child's 
time was occupied by direction of the parent in work or visiting. 

"Tardiness, that is, arriving late, is a direct injury to the 
whole school. The confusion of hurrying to seats, gathering 
together of books, etc., by tardy ones, at a time when all should 
be at study, cannot fail to greatly impede the progress of those 
who are regular and prompt in attendance. The rule requiring 
prompt and regular attendance is demanded for the good of the 
whole school." 

In the Vermont decision it w^as said that in case of casual sick- 
ness of the scholar; of sickness or death in the family of the 



THE LEGAL STATUS OF THE TEACHER. 309 

scholar; of some impediment, like fire or flood; and in case of 
various incidents of current life, giving occasion for temporary 
detention, the enforcement of the penalty of exclusion for unex- 
cused absence would be adjudged to be unauthorized.* 

A rule which excludes from school a pupil for failure to pay for 
injuries accidentally done the schoolhouse is not authorized by a 
clause permitting suspension of a pupil for a breach of discipline 
or an offence against good order. The court said : f " The State 
does not deprive its citizens of their property, or their liberty, or 
any of their rights except as a punishment for a crime. It would 
be very harsh and obviously unjust to deprive a child of educa- 
tion for the reason that through accident and without intention 
of wrong he destroyed property of the school district. Doubt- 
less a child may be expelled from school as a punishment for 
breach of discipline or for offences against good morals, but not 
for innocent acts." A rule that would bar the doors of a school- 
house against little children, who come a great distance in cold, 
winter weather, for no other reason than that they are a few 
minutes tardy, is unreasonable and therefore unlawful. $ 

Suspension of pupils in the absence of rules.— The law gov- 
erning the suspension of pupils by a teacher in cases where no 
rule requiring it exists has been clearly stated recently in Wis- 
consin in an opinion by Judge L^^on, from which the following- 
extended quotation is taken : || " While the principal or teacher 
in charge of a public school is subordinate to the school board or 
board of education of his district or city, and must enforce rules 
and regulations adopted by the board for the government of the 
school, and execute all its lawful orders in that behalf, he does 
not derive all his power and authority in the school and over his 
pupils from the aflSrmative action of the board. He stands for 
the time being in loco parentis to his pupils, and, because of that 



* Ferriter v. Tyler, 48 Vt., 444, 477 ; s. c, 21 Am. Rep., 133. 

f Perkins ('.Directors of Independent School District of West Des Moines, 56 
Iowa, 476, 479. 

I Thompson v. Beaver. 63 111., 353, 357. 

II State V. Burton, 45 Wis., 150, 155; s.c.,30 Am. Rep., 706. See also Parker i'. School 
District, 5 Lea (Tenn.), 528. 



310 PAGE'S THEORY AND PBACTICE. 

relation, he nnist necessarily exercise authority over them m 
many things concerning' which the board may have remained 
silent. In the school, as in the family, there exist on the part of 
the pupils the obligations of obedience to lawful commands, sub- 
ordination, civil deportment, respect for the rights of other 
pupils, and fidelity to duty. These obligations are inherent in any 
proper school system, and constitute, so to speak, the common 
law of the school. Every pupil is presumed to know this law, and 
is subject to it whether it has or has not been re-enacted by the 
district board in the form of written rules and regulations. 
Indeed, it would seem impossible to frame rules which would 
cover all cases of insubordination and all acts of vicious tendency 
which the teacher is liable to encounter daily and hourly. 

" The teacher *is responsible for the discipline of his school and 
for the progress, conduct, and deportment of his pupils. It is 
his imperative duty to maintain good order and to require of his 
pupils a faithful performance of their duties. If he fails in this he 
is unfit for his position. To enable him to discharge these duties 
effectually he must necessarily^ have the power to enforce prompt 
obedience to his lawful commands. For this reason the law gives 
him the power, in proper cases, to inflict corporal punishment 
upon refractory pupils. But there are cases of misconduct for 
which such punishment is an inadequate remedy. If the offender is 
incorrigible, suspension or expulsion is the only adequate remedy. 
In general, no doubt, the teacher should report a case of that 
kind to the proper board for its action in the first instance, if no 
delay will necessarily result from that course prejudicial to the 
best interests of the school. But the conduct of the recusant 
pupil may be such that his presence in the school for a day or an 
hour may be disastrous to the discipline of the school and even 
to the morals of the other pupils. In such a case it seems abso- 
lutely essential to the welfare of the school that the teacher 
should have the power to suspend the offender at once from the 
privileges of the school; and he must necessaril3^ decide for 
himself whether the case requires that remedy." 

Persons having the general charge and superintendence of 



THE LEGAL STATUS OF THE TEACHER. 311 

public schools have power to exclude a child for sufficient cause, 
as, for example, that his conduct, not in violation of prescribed 
rules, tended to injure the discipline and impair the usefulness of 
the school.* The view that acts, to be within the authority of 
the school board and teachers for discipline and correction, must 
be done within school hours is narrow and without regard to the 
spirit of the law and the best interest of common schools. t But 
the publication of an article ridiculing school officers and tending 
to create insubordination in a school cannot be punished by the 
expulsion of the offender, when the statute only authorizes dis- 
missals for gross immorality and persistent violation of school 
regulations. $ If a person would recover damages for exclusion 
from a school he must first appeal to school officers who have 
authority to reinstate him,|| if there be such, and, if the case come 
to trial, prove the action of the officers excluding him to have 
been wanton and malicious. § 

Corporal Punishment.— In the absence of statutory enact- 
ments, the authorities upon the right of a teacher to inflict rea- 
sonable chastisement upon a pupil are not numerous, but they 
are sufficient to prove its existence.il The law is well settled that 
the teacher has the right to exact from his pupils obedience to 
his lawful and reasonable commands, and to punish disobedience, 
with "kindness, prudence, and propriety."** 



* Hodgkins v. Rockport, 105 Mass., 475. 

f Burdick v. Babcock,31 Iowa, 5G7. See Lander r. Seaver,32 Vt., 114. 

t Murphy v. Board of Directors of Independent District of Marengo, 30 Iowa, 429. 

II Davis V. Boston, 133 Mass., 103. 

$McCormick v. Burt, 95 111., 263; S. C.,35Am. Rep., 163. 

IT State r. Mizner, 45 Iowa, 248. 

**Danenhofler v. State, 69 Ind., 295; s. c, 35 Am. Rep., 216. 



CHAPTER XIX. 

OUTLINES OF PAGE's THEORY AND PRACTICE OF TEACHING; 
FOR THE USE OF READING CIRCLES AND TO AID THE 
INDIVIDUAL TEACHER IN REVIEW AS WELL AS IN A MORE 
SYSTEMATIC AND COMPREHENSIVE STUDY OF THE BOOK. 

FIRST MONTH. 

Pages 11-19. 

Biographical sketch of David Perkins Page. Born July 4th, 1810, 
Died January 1st, 1848. 

1. Early Years. 2. Life at Newburyport. 3. The N. Y. State 
Normal School. 4. Character and Influence. 
1. Page's place among educators. 2. Educational leaders of 
his time (Frederick Froebel, Victor Cousin, Horace Mann, Joseph 
Payne). 3. Boyhood life on the farm. 4. His entry at Hamp- 
ton Academy. 5. A teacher in his "teens." 6. Adoption of the 
profession. 7. Careful preparation of all his work. 8. Public 
lecturer and orator. 9. Life at Newburyport. 10. Selection as 
the leader to establish the New York State Normal School. 11. 
Horace Mann's injunction to Page, "Succeed or Die!" 12. The 
Governor's opposition. 13. Page's last Christmas, and his 
departure. 14. Page's legacy—" The Teacher's Blackstone." 

SECOND MONTH. 

Page 21-51. 

1. Spirit of the Teacher. 2. The Lessons of the Pear Tree. The 

Teacher is Responsible. 3. Moral Training. The Lesson of 

the Prison. 4. Personal Habits of the Teacher. 

In Page's Theory and Practice the author begins at the true 

beginning. It is not assumed that all persons are alike fitted by 

nature for the teacher's work. The reader is shown at the outset 

that if he be lacking in the spirit of the teacher, no mere study of 

(312) 



OUTLINES. 31 3 

pedagogical science will suffice for the full accomplishment of the 
teacher's mission; that the want of natural adaptation cannot 
be supplied with a mere knowledge of work and methods. The 
causes which have hindered the success and delayed the recogni- 
tion of the profession, which seeks now to be admitted even as a 
" new profession," are set forth clearly and forcibly. The mirror 
is held up, and teachers can see in the reflection reasons for the 
lower rank which their calling has so long held. The teacher's 
responsibility is stated in the spirit of one who felt that responsi- 
bility in its fullest weight. Of the nature of that responsibility, 
the writer takes a broad and liberal view. It is not the mind 
alone that is to be trained, guarded and developed. The physi- 
cal and moral welfare of the pupil is to be secured. 

Taking for an illustration a homely incident of Page's life in 
Newburyport — his experience with a pear tree — he states epi- 
gram matically four facts which lie at the base of the science of 
teaching; and in relating another incident — his visit to the 
prison at Auburn — he impresses the necessity for moral training. 
Outlining, then, briefly, the true order of intellectual development, 
he presents a basis for the arrangement of studies in a course. 

Few teachers have ever illustrated in their own persons what a 
teacher should be in manner, appearance and character more 
faithfully than Page. All the elements of his strength were neces- 
sary in the great work which he was called upon to perform. Nor 
can any teacher afford to neglect any means of influence for good 
which it is possible for him to possess and to use. The need of a 
more extended knowledge of the branches to be pursued than is 
contained in text-books, the need of a knowledge of sciences 
which are not to be taught specifically in the district schools — 
the need, in short, of a generous culture, should be impressed upon 
the minds of all who would undertake the training of youth. 
The habits and the acquirements of the teacher are discussed in 
the work of this month, and form a subject of special interest 
and value. 

First Week. — 1. The spirit of the teacher. Something more 
than mental power requisite. A conscientious, inquiring, reverent, 



314 PAGE'S THEORY AND PRACTICE. 

zealous spirit. 2. The teacher's motives. The work peculiarly 
open to those who are not animated by the highest motives. 
Teaching as a secondary object. Teaching as a stepping-stone to 
"something higher." The result of a wrong estimate of the 
dignit}^ of the work. 3. The harmful results of such teaching 
visited on the pupils rather than on the teacher himself. Igno- 
rance no excuse. 

Second Week. — 1. The four lessons of the pear tree. 2. The 
teacher responsible <\like forwdiat he does and for what he fails to 
do. 3. The physical health of pupils. Over-excitement; over- 
study; impure air; wrong temperature; want of exercise. What 
evil should the teacher especially aim to avert? 4. A natural 
order in the education of a child. The order of nature in teach- 
ing reading. 5. Earliest lessons in arithmetic. Earliest lessons 
in geography. The first map drawn. 6. History connected with 
geography. A common mistake. 7. Writing on the slate should 
be commenced early. The use of the pen at the age of ten years. 
8. The relation of written arithmetic to mental. 9. Practical 
grammar may be early acquired by means of language lessons. 
Exercises in description. 10. The study of grammar should not 
be commenced too early. It cannot be depended upon to do the 
work of language lessons. Maturit^^ of mind necessary to its 
comprehension. 11. Wrong manner of studying. Studying for 
the recitation. Studying the book rather than the subject. The 
results of such study. 12. Right manner of studying. A motto 
for pupils. Mental discipline, rather than knowledge mechani- 
cally acquired. 13. Two pictures of school children. 

NOTES ON SCHOOL HYGIENE. 

1. The size of the school building should be such as to allow twenty- 
five square feet of floor space and 300 cubic feet of air space for each 
pupil. On this standard a room to accommodate forty pupils .should 
not be less than 40x25x12 feet. 

2. The grounds should include from one to three acres, and should be 
supplied with suitable walks. The community should unite in the work 
of Arbor Days, and render these grounds tasteful and beautiful. 

3. The minimum of window space should be one-sixth of the floor 
area. The most comfortable and wholesome light is that coming from 



OUTLINES. 315 

but one side of the room; sufficient light, however, is difficult to obtain 
from one side. Cross-light from opposite sides is a far less evil than 
cross-light at right angles. 

Windows should be supplied with suitable blinds that undesirable 
light may be excluded. 

4. The amount of fresh air admitted per hour should be about 1,000 
feet for each pupil. It must be remembered that children are far more 
susceptible to atmospheric poisoning than adults, and yet reveal less 
quickly the disorganization of system arising therefrom. The windows 
should be thrown up at recesses and at noon in all weathers, and the 
atmosphere of the room purified. During much of the year some of the 
windows should be left open at the top. In the use of various arrange- 
ments for ventilation both ingress and egress of the air should be facili- 
tated. 

5. The normal temperature of a healthy room is seventy degrees. The 
most approved of ventilating stoves should be used, and the conditions 
of their adaptation should be carefully observed. 

Third Week.— 1. Knowledge without moral training not always 
a blessing. Teaching by precept alone not sufficient. 2. The 
moral nature strengthened by exercise, and capable of system- 
atic and successful cultivation. 3. Pupils should be taught the 
danger of silencing conscience. Appeals to the moral sense. The 
wrong that may be done by a teacher possessing the love and 
confidence of his pupils. 

"Feeling is not co-ordinate with intelligence and will. Intelligence 
and will are co-ordinate powers which condition feeling. Feeling must 
be cultivated through intellect and will. The school has to do with sepa- 
rating these powers and subordinating them." — Dr. William T. Harris. 

"The opinion prevails among many teachers that intellectual devel- 
opment is, by its nature, separate and distinct from moral training. Of 
all the evils in our schools this terrible mistake is productive of the 
greatest."— Frazjci-s W. Parker. 

4. Our debt of gratitude to the Christian religion, Rehgion as 
opposed to sectarianism. 5. How much and what of religion 
may be taught? In what w^ays may it be inculcated? 6. The 
danger of cultivating a spirit of skepticism. 7. A high standard 
for the teacher. What teachers have nothing to fear from their 
responsibility as to religious influence. 8. The lesson of the 
prison. 



316 PAGE'S THEORY AND PRACTICE. 

"God help lis to realize that there is something else to be accom- 
plished in our schoolrooms besides intellectual acquirements and mental 
discipline." — Eva D. Kellogg. 

" Oh, thank God, all who see it, for that older fashion yet, of immor- 
tality. And look upon us, angels of young children, with regards not 
quite estranged, when the swift river bears us to the ocean." — Dickens. 

Fourth Week.— 1. The characteristics of the teacher are sub- 
jects of observation and imitation by pupils. His teaching by 
example is not limited to his association with them in the school- 
room. 2. Neatness. The importance of little things. Frequent 
bathing peculiarly needful to the teacher. Care of the teeth. 
Care of the nails. The teacher's dress. 3. The use of tobacco. 
4. Order. Its observance in the school, at the boarding house, 
and in the teacher's room. 5. The language of the teacher 
should be pure and accurate. Things which are to be avoided. 
6. Courtesy. It does not consist in simply complying with rules 
of etiquette in the fashionable world. The influence of the 
teacher's courtesy upon the pupils. 7. Punctuality. The effect 
of a single tardiness of the teacher per month. Questionable 
hours. Punctuality, as a habit, should be observable in every- 
thing. Why is it necessary? 8. The teacher should pursue a 
regular course of reading and study. How^ time may be found 
for the work. 9. Knowing the characteristics of the true teacher, 
all should endeavor not to lower the standard. 

THIRD MONTH. 

Page 52-73. 

1. A Teacher's Curriculum. 2. Self Culture. 3. What Education 
is Not. 4. Right Views. 

First Week.— 1. The statutes prescribe the minimum of attain- 
ments of the teacher. It is not desirable that the minimum be 
taken as the standard. In the advancement of the profession, 
more will be required in the way of educational culture. 2. The 
teacher needs more than a text-book knowledge of the subjects he 
is to teach, and also a knowledge of more branches than he will 
probably be required to teach specifically. 3. Orthography more 



OUTLINES. 317 

than spelling. Our alphabet imperfect. A correct knowledge and 
use of the elementary sounds. 4. A startling fact— there is but 
one good reader in one hundred teachers. The remarkable 
results of Horace Mann's investigation of the subje(.t. Pupils 
should comprehend, think, and feel all they read. 5. For what 
reasons is a knowledge of Latin and Greek desirable? 6. It is 
not respectable for a teacher to be a poor writer. 7. An esti- 
mate of what a teacher should know of the geography of all 
lands. 8. The value of mental arithmetic. Clear and concise 
statement of each process. 

The use of punctuation, it must be remembered, is to make clear the 
construction of sentences and the relations of words, and not to guide 
the voice except by indicating the meaning of the language used. There 
may be commas which do not indicate pauses of the voice, and rhetorical 
pauses which are not indicated by commas. Nature, and not punctua- 
tion, must determine how a passage is to be read. It should be read as 
it would be naturally spoken. 

Second Week. — 1. Arithmetic should be known by principles, 
rather than rules. Page's estimate of what a teacher should 
know of written arithmetic. 2. Peculiar facts concerning gram- 
mar. Few^ teachers have a, liberal acquaintance with it. It is a 
science in which the mind naturally runs to bigotry. 3. Gram- 
mar the philosophy of language. To appreciate the characteris- 
tics of his own tongue, the teacher should know something of 
other tongues. 4. Where he does not possess such acquirements 
he should study the subject of grammar in works other than 
text-books. 5. The advantages of a knowledge of algebra, even 
where the teacher does not have to teach it. 6. The value of a 
knowledge of geometry, of trigonometry, and of surveying. 
7. Natural philosophy not generally taught in the district 
schools. This a reason why the teacher should have a special 
knowledge of the subject. 8. Some acquaintance with chemistry 
desirable. 

"That the leading obgect of the study of English grammar is to teach 
the correct use of the English language is, in my opinion, an error, and 
one which is gradually becoming removed. One must be a reflective 
user of language to amend even here and there a point by grammatical 



318 PAGE'S THEORY AND PRACTICE. 

reasons. No one ever changed from a bad speaker to a good one by- 
applying rules of grammar to what he said." — Professor Whitney. 

Third Week. — 1. The teacher should well understand the sub- 
ject of phj^siology. Practical instruction needed in the science. 

2. Statistics of mortality. Dr. Woodworth's estimate. Horace 
Mann's comment on quackery. 3. Intellectual and moral phi- 
losophy; rhetoric and logic. How useful. 4. Book-keeping. 
Common ignorance of the subject and of business usages, among 
teachers. The wide extent of its usefulness. 5. Federal and 
State constitutions. Special need of an acquaintance with the 
supreme law. 6. Drawing, and its practical value to the teacher. 
7. Music as a safety-valve. Other reasons in its favor. 8. The 
habit of acquiring general knowledge. The temptation to which 
the teacher is liable, to limit his attainments to the branches he 
expects to teach. 9. Page's plnn for the study of special subjects 
(a plan well adapted to a system of county and township insti- 
tutes or associations). 

"I have seen teachers conducting lessons on the need of ventilation, 
the atmosphere of the recitation rooms being at the same time almost 
suffocating. I have seen teachers teaching from the book the care of the 
teeth, their own teeth being at the same time carious, discolored, neg- 
lected and offensive. Of what good is teaching without practice?"" 
— Remark of a Superintendent. 

Fourth Week. — 1. AVithout a definite idea as to what consti- 
tutes education, the teacher may accomplish little good. 2. In 
other occupations of life the need of competent workers is recog- 
nized by society. Is the work of the teacher less difficult, less 
important, less needful of natural and acquired qualifications? 

3. Evils resulting from the indifference of communities and from 
the teacher's want of a correct idea of education. 4. Imparting 
knowledge does not constitute education. 5. The cultivation of 
the intellectual powers is not education, nor is it always a benefit. 
It may be a positive evil. 6. The first thing necessary is for the 
teacher to form a true ideal of human excellence— mental, moral, 
and physical. 7. Next is the question. How is this ideal to be 
realized? The question requires time, study and meditation. 



OUTLINES. 311) 

8. Authors to be consulted. (For some of those mentioned may 
be substituted Pestalozzi, Froebel, Payne, Spencer and others.) 

9. Etymology of the word education. Education is inspira- 
tion and discipline. It is arousing the child's mind to think for 
itself. 

"An educator is therefore a trainer, whose function it is to draw forth 
persistently, habitually, and permanently the powers of a child; and 
education is the process which he employs for this purpose."— /o.sep72 
Payne. 

"p]ducation is the development of the faculties, or germs of power, in 
man, and the training of them into harmonious action in obedience to 
the laws of reason and morality." — Dv. Hewett. 

"The practical farmer, the ingenious mechanic, the talented artist, 
the upright legislator or judge, the accomi)]ished teacher, are only modi- 
fications or varieties of the original man. The man is the trunk; the 
occupations and professions are only different qualities of the fruit it 
yields. The development of the common nature, the cultivation of the 
germs of intelligence, uprightness, benevolence, truth, that belongs to all 
— these are the principle, the aim, the end; while special preparation for 
the field or the shop, for the forum or the desk, for the land or the sea, 
are but incidents."— iiforace Mann. 

BRIEF NOTES OF EDUCATIONAL AUTHORS. 

1. John Milton. 1608-74.— From 1640 to 1660 the poet Milton was 
"carried out of art into politics, and out of poetry into prose." His 
pamphlets, written within this period, are inconceivably bold and power- 
ful. He defended liberty against the crown, the prelates, the canon laws. 
His dictation was majestic, the force of his argument at times over- 
whelming. Among these noted prose writings was his "Tractate on 
Education." Despising precedent, and living in the revolutionary age, 
he condemns the whole system of schools and colleges of his time, as con- 
taining more of evil than of good, and proposes a new system of national 
education modeled chiefly after the schools of ancient Athens and Sparta. 
"Grand, noble, colossal, but at the same time (as our readers need 
hardly be cautioned) totally impracticable and Utopian, Milton's plan 
of education embraces, like that of ancient Greeks, as may be collected 
from the half fabulous accounts of the antique philosophers and histo- 
rians, the physical no less than the moral and intellectual development 
of the human powers. The bodies of the English youths were to be 
trained in all kinds of corporal and gymnastic exercises, while their minds 
were to be occupied with the whole cycle of human knowledge, in which 
the arts, particularly music, were by no means to be neglected. The 



320 PAGE'S THEORY AND PRACTICE. 

whole scheme reminds the reader of nothing so strongly as of the half 
burlesque description of the education of Pantagruel in the immortal 
romance of Rabelais. 

In si)ite, however, of the fantastical character of the education pro- 
posed by Milton, his famous tract is replete with utterances of profound 
wisdom. It has exerted a vast influence for good, and continues to be 
recognized as* an educational classic, and to be quoted in discussions of 
educational topics. 

"I call, therefore, a complete, generous education, that which fits a 
man to perform justly, skillfully and magnanimously all the offices, both 
public and private, of peace and of war." — John Milton. 

II. John Locke. 1632-90. — This celebrated English metaph3\sician 
commenced his great work, the "Essay on the Human Understanding," 
in 1670, and completed it after seventeen years of labor. By stating with 
luminous clearness the workings of the mind, he guards against errors 
in the search after truth. He turned the attention of teachers to nature 
as a true guide in educational matters. He was the avowed foe of all 
manner of scholasticism and mysticism, and practically taught clearness 
of thought and the use of plain, simple forms of expression. His " Essay 
on Education," a later work, contains, as Hallam says, more good sense 
on the subject than can be found in any preceding writer. He contem- 
plates the education of the whole man — intellectual, moral and ])hysical. 
Useful and customary accomplishments as well as book-learning are 
required by his system. It is held that he overstates the influence of 
habit in molding character, and also that his idea of discipline is harsh 
and severe. 

///. Jean Jacques Roussenu. 1712-78.— A French writer of brilliant 
genius but of loose morals. He sent his children at birth to the hos- 
pital for foundlings. He published a famous work entitled "Emile," 
setting forth his ideas of education of youth. It contains much that is 
good, with much that is false. He was, of course, a mere theorist. He 
claimed to follow nature, and thus led others to a truer study of natural 
principles. The style of the work is very felicitous and captivating. 

IV. Johann Heinrich Pestalozzi. 1745-1827. — A Swiss teacher, the 
greatest of modern educational reformers. He established in his coun- 
try-seat at Neu Hof, in Aargau, an industrial school for the poor— the 
first ever founded. It failed. Following the French massacres in the 
Canton of Nidwalden, he maintained in an old convent at Stanz, a 
school for the starving and homeless victims of the war. For a time 
he conducted a school in Burgdorf, and afterward established a famous 
institute of learning in the old castle of Yverdon, in the Canton of Yaud. 
He wrote ''Leonard and Gertrude" and some minor works. The Pesta- 
lozzian system is now in use in all the more advanced nations of th? 



OUTLINES. 321 

world. No other man has influenced primary education so much as 
Festal ozzi. 

V. Frieclrkh Froebel. 1782-1852.— K very noted German educator, 
the author of the kindergarten, a training-place for young children. It 
embraces the training from infancy— a development of both the physical 
and the mental powers in accordance with the order of nature. The 
materials used are called "gifts," and each successive gift is adai)ted 
to the development and needs of the child nature. The first kinder- 
garten was established at Blankenburg in 1840. Froebel was a disciple 
of Pestalozzi, having studied with him at Yverdon. The kindergarten 
system is now very popular in America and in several of the nations of 
Europe, and receives a large share of public attention. 

Yl. Victor Cousin. 1792-1867.— Owe of the most notable French 
writers of this century, and one of the greatest of modern philosophers. 
He was made member of the French council of education on the forma- 
tion of the Guizot ministry in 1830. Three years later, thirty-five 
thousand public primary schools were established in France. M. Cousin 
was subsequently director of the French National Normal School. His 
reports are of great value and interest. He reformed the elementary 
education of France, and reviewed philosophically the educational sys- 
tem of other nations, with which he had become familiar by travel and 
observation as well as by a study of authorities. 

YII. Horace Mann. 1796-1859.— The most eminent of American 
educators. Distinguished also as a statesman and lawyer. Was secre- 
tary of the State Board of Education of Massachusetts from 1837 to 
1848. During all this time he worked fifteen hours a day, conducting 
an immense correspondence, delivering addresses, holding institutes and 
conventions, and laboring in every way for the advancement of educa- 
tion in America. His education reports are of the greatest value. 

YIII. Joseph Payne. 1808-76.— An English teacher and educational 
author, was the firfet to hold a chair of the science and art of education 
in a reputable college of the English-speaking world, being elected to 
that position in the English College of Preceptors. Was an earnest 
advocate of the systems of Pestalozzi and Froebel, and of the higher 
education of women. He was distinguished for his attainments in 
philology. He was the author of valuable lectures on the art of 
teaching. 

IX. Herbert Spencer. 1820.— An English essayist and critic of the 
highest rank. His "Psychology" appeared in 1855, and his "Educa- 
tion" in 1862. His fame rests chiefly upon the former work, but the 
latter has exerted a deep influence upon the people of England and 
America. He is regarded as one of the most eminent philosophers of 
his time. <# 

T. P.— 21. 



322 PAGE'S THEORY AND PRACTICE. 



FOURTH MONTH. 

Pages 74-106. 

1. Right and Wrong Modes of Teaching. 2. Waking Up the 

Mind. 3. How to Conduct Recitations. 4. How Not to 

Conduct Them. 

In the work of this month the manner of conducting recita- 
tions and the means to be used in awakening interest are dis- 
cussed". Much that is stated will be in the nature of a surprise to 
the teacher, since the author strongly objects to the use of means 
which teachers very generally employ without hesitation or ques- 
tion. In the words of Socrates, it is making the worse appear 
the better reason, against which Page enters protest. It will be 
well to weigh carefully his arguments, and to remember that he 
records the results of personal experience and careful observa- 
tion. 

First Week.— 1. Should the education of the mental, moral and 
physical powers be commenced simultaneously, or at different 
times? What is the teaching of nature on this question? 2. 
The life failures of many "good scholars." The success of many 
"poor scholars." Are these instances of freaks of nature, or are 
they the results of education received ? 3. Page's explanation of 
the facts. The peril of exciting the mind too much. 4. Aptness 
to teach. The teacher cannot be successful without it. Is it an 
instinct or an acquired power? 5. Too much, not too little 
assistance rendered to pupils the more common error. (Here 
is where Pestalozzi himself was at fault in his teaching.) 6. The 
pouring-in process described. The mind injured by unsuccessful 
efforts to retain. 7. The drawing-out process described. (It must 
be remembered that this expression is often used in a different 
sense from that in which Page uses it here. ) The evils resulting 
from this kind of drawing-out process. 8. Two things the 
teacher should not do when appealed to for assistance. 9. The 
satisfaction of the pupil in mastering a difficult subject for 
himself. • 



OUTLINES. 323 

"In fact, Dr. Bliinber's establishment was a great hot-house, in which 
there was a forcing- apparatus incessantly at work. All the boys blew 
before their time. Mental green peas were produced at Christmas, and 
intellectual asparagus all the year round. Mathematical gooseberries 
(very sour ones, too), were common at untimely seasons, and from mere 
sprouts of bushes, under Dr. Blimber's cultivation. Every description of 
Greek and Latin vegetable was got off the dryest twigs of boys, under 
the frostiest circumstances. Nature was of no consequence at all. No 
matter what a young gentleman was intended to bear, Dr. Blimber made 
him to bear a pattern, some how or other." — Dickens. 

" Questioning is not the best method of instruction, nor can it safely 
be adopted as the only method. Yet the method has a place, and may 
be useful ; first, to direct the attention of the pupil to special topics, or 
thoughts which have been omitted in the recitation; second, it is useful 
in conducting reviews and examinations." — Hiram Orcutt. 

Second Week.— 1. How is the skill of the teacher best mani- 
fested? 2. Something more than the stated branches should be 
taught in the schools. The school age the most critical period of 
the pupil's life. Many things useful and necessary to be taught 
not given in the prescribed text-books. 3. The uses of general 
exercises. They rest the body and mind. They afford the only 
opportunity for presenting many important subjects not in the 
line of required work. 4. The lesson on the ear of corn. 5. The 
lesson on seeds. 6. Other subjects for oral lessons. 7. The effect 
of such lessons on the pupils. 8. The effect on parents. 9. The 
effect on the teacher himself. 10. Things necessary to success in 
this work. The exercises should be short. They should be oppor- 
tune. They should not be made a " hobby." 

The " Flowerless Plants" of the earlier botanists are produced from 
spores, which correspond to the seeds of the " Flowering Plants." Heaps 
(sori) of these spores may be seen on the back of a fern frond, presenting 
the appearance of reddish brown spots. The edges of the brake are 
rolled over, covering up a line of spore cases. 

In many county schools there are small cabinets for simple apparatus 
and for collections of leaves, woods, rocks, fossils, arrow-heads, etc. 
These collections are used for object lessons. Thus valuable instruction 
is combined with recreation. Interesting collections of this kind, made 
by pupils, received marked attention at a recent national educational 
exhibition. 



324 PAGE'S THEORY AND PRACTICE. 

Third Week.— 1. A difference observable in writers, speakers, 
and teachers — a corresponding difference in schools. 2. What 
constitutes the accomplished teacher? 3. The natural gift of 
ability to interest and instruct — can this faculty be acquired? 
4. The teacher should recall the operations of his own mind in 
childhood. 5. The importance of ascertaining the natural order. 
6. Keasons why a mastery of the subjects is necessary to the 
teacher. 7. The necessity for a special preparation for each 
recitation. The teacher's ''Common-place Book." 8. Fluency 
and correctness of speech necessary to the teacher. Examples of 
misused words. 

" It is said, one loses this enthusiasm after awhile. Then he ought to 
stop teaching. If he cannot grow enthusiastic presenting the plainest 
rules of arithmetic and Latin for the fiftieth time to a new mind, he is 
unfit for his work, and should spend his strength on stone or clay, which 
can only yield to force, but never take form at a mere glow of enthusiasm 
in the worker."— P/^esir/ewt Chadhourne. 

Fourth Week.— 1. The importance of the teacher's manner, 
tone, attitude, animation— in its influence upon the class. 2. 
The attention of the pupils must be secured and held. 3. The 
recitation erroneously considered by pupils the object of study. 
The evil results of this idea. How they may be prevented. 4. 
The frequency of the use of unintelligible words in explanations 
by the teacher. What is the result of this? 5. It is as easy to 
have good lessons as to have poor lessons. Promptness and 
accuracy in recitations. 6. The evils of recitations in concert. Are 
such recitations ever useful? 7. Individuality in method. 

''When poor Paul had spelt out (book) number two, he found he had 
no idea of number one ; fragments afterwards obtruded themselves into 
number three, which shded into number four, which grafted itself on to 
number two. So that whether twenty Romuluses made a Remus, or hie 
haec hoc was Troy weight, or a verb always agreed with an ancient 
Briton, or three times four was Taurus, a bull, were open questions with 
him. 

** * Oh, Dombey, Dombey ! ' said Miss Bhmber, ' this is shocking !' " 
" ' If you please,' said Paul, 'I think if I might sometimes talk a little 
with old Glubb, I should be able to do better.'"— i>icA'ez2«. 



OUTLINES. 325 

FIFTH MONTH. 

Pages 107-134. 

1. Incentives to Study and Good Conduct. 2. Prizes. 3. Proper 
Incentives. 4. A Tetichefs Requisites for Good Government. 

If the motives first discussed are less worthy, the higher incen- 
tives are not wanting in the nature of children, nor are they less 
potent in their influence when called out. 

Since it is in government that most teachers fail, it is highly 
essential that the conditions and qualities of good government 
be well understood, and especially that the teacher should know 
the legal and moral status of his authorit3^ Here, it is true, is 
debatable ground. Yet, while the field is not wholly free from 
controversy, the main points are well established by clear and 
forcible arguments. 

First Week.— 1. Motives to be employed in exciting interest in 
study. An artificial stimulus harmful. The higher principles to 
be aroused. The greater ease of securing a temporary interest by 
appealing to lower considerations. 2. The long controversy as 
to the wisdom of appealing to a spirit of emulation. The contro- 
vers3' turns somewhat upon the meaning of the word. 3. The 
emulation of which St. Paul speaks, which is unquestionably 
right. 4. The emulation of which St. Paul gives warning. 5. 
Since a wrong or questionable spirit of emulation does exist in 
the character of pupils, and will be found to characterize the 
world with which they mingle in after life, should the teacher 
attempt to utilize it for good in the schoolroom? 6. Page's 
view. This spirit should not be encouraged. It is not even 
expedient to encourage it. The evil of •' head-marks." 

"The judicious exercise of approbation is of the first importance in 
promoting obedience, and in cultivating in the bosom of the child affec- 
tionate and cheerful feehngs. Let your smiles animate Iiis heart and 
cheer him on in duty." — /. S. C. Abbott. 

Second Week. — 1. The question of prizes. Page's experience 
and conclusions. 2. Prize seeking a lower and less worthy mo- 
tive. 3. The danger of an ungenerous rivalry . 4. It is inexpedient 



326 PAGE'S THEORY AND PRACTICE. 

for the same reason that a system of "head-marks" is inexpe- 
dient. 5. Prize scholars or " honor men," not usually the most 
distinguished in after life. 6. The liability to injustice in making 
the award. 7. Pupils are not all upon an equal footing as to 
facilities for work. 8. Improper means often used to secure the 
prize. 9. Success not always a true criterion of merit. 10. The 
reaction when the stimulus is withdrawn. 

"The marking of class recitations does not determine the ability of 
the man in future life. The brilliant scholar who has spent his time in 
comparative idleness, and looked with contempt upon the laborious 
student who stumbles in recitation, has often been compelled to step 
aside and see his less scholarly, but more industrious, companion come 
up to occupy positions which he (the former) could not fill. Good schol- 
arship is desirable, but it sometimes happens that the brilliant scholar is 
sadly deficient in those manly qualities which are the only guarantee of 
success in life — common sense, untiring industry, energy and perseverance. 
Treat the dull scholar with stimulants, the timid with encouragement, 
the self-sufficient with hard questions and severity ; task the apt scholar, 
and give him but little assistance/' — Hiram Orcutt. 

Third Week.— 1. The love of approbation of parents and 
friends a proper motive. 2. The desire to advance. 3. The desire 
to be useful. 4. The desire to do right. 5. The marvelous 
acquisitions of the first three years of life. The cause of this 
amazing progress. 6. Observations concerning children, the deaf 
and dumb and the blind. 7. The delight in acquisition is a 
natural incentive. 8. The superiority of natural to artificial 
stimulation in the pupil's work. 9. This incentive destroyed 
by surfeiting. 

Fourth Week. — 1. Self-government the first requisite of a 
teacher in governing a school. 2. The exhibition of anger by a 
teacher. 3. Extremes of levity and moroseness. 4. Pupils 
marked by physical or mental defects must not be the subjects of 
cutting remarks. 5. A teacher must not doubt his own ability 
to govern. Bravery and self-confidence in the right. 6. The 
only object of government. 7. The teacher must not govern 
according to his feelings, but with uniformity. 8. School govern- 
ment must be equal and impartial. 9. Elements of character 



OUTLINES. 327 

which a teacher may use in governing. 10. The evils of vacilla- 
tion. 11. Conscientiousness essential to good government. 

'' Hartsook's first day in school was hurried and unsatisfactory. He 
was not master of himseh', and consequently was not master of anybody 
else. When evening came there were symptoms of insubordination through 
the whole school. Poor Ralph was sick at heart. Half that night the 
young man lay awake. At last comfort came to him. A reminiscence of 
the death of the raccoon flashed on him like a vision. He remembered 
Bud's certificate that ' Ef Bull once takes a holt, heaven and yarth can't 
make him let go.' He thought that what Flat Creek needed was a bull- 
dog. He would be a bull-dog, quiet, but invincible. He would take hold 
in such a way that nothing should make him let go, and then he went to 
sleep." —E'd'jvard Eggleston. 

SIXTH MONTH. 

Pages 134-174. 

1. Means of Securing Good Order. 2. Proper and Improper 
Punishments. 3. Corporal Punishment. 4. Limitations 
and Suggestions. 

First Week.— 1. A teacher's frankness and freedom from 
assumption disarms resistance on the part of the pupil. 2. 
Courtesy mingled with firmness. 3. The evils which result from 
a suspicious spirit. Dr. Franklin's rule. 4. The school must be 
kept employed. How this may be accomplished. A stated time 
for the study of each lesson. 5. The evil of numerous rules. A 
comprehensive rule. 6. The evil of announcing penalties in 
advance. 7. Want of interest a frequent cause for disorder. 
Variety in the work. 8. The value of vocal music in a school. 
9. Acquaintance with the parents of the pupils an aid to govern- 
ment. 10. Page's system of credits. The evils of '^ black- 
marks." An estimate of the value of a register. 11. Govern- 
ment is a means rather than an end. 12. The mistake of too 
much government. Who govern best? Can a school be kept too 
quiet? 13. Many schools can be governed without resort to fear 
or force. 

"Children are very much creatures of sympathy. They form their 
characters from those around them. And we must cherish in our bosoms 
those virtues we would foster in theirs. If we would give them calm, 



828 PAGE'S THEORY AND PRACTICE. 

gentle and friendly feelings, we must first show them by our example 
how valuable those feelings are."— J. S. C. Abbott. 

Second Week. — 1. A definition of punishment; the importance 
of the motive in punishing. 2. The authority to punish; the 
legal status of the teacher — in loco parentis. 3. The argument 
against punishment; the argument in its favor. 4. Two general 
classes of punishment. Is it consistent to favor the first class 
and not the second? 5. Improper punishments; indignities. 6. 
Scolding; the use of slang and low wit. 7. Cruel punishments. 

8. Ridicule; objections to its use. 

"In reality it will be found that any valid arguments against corporal 
punishments are valid against all punishments. To punish is to inflict 
pain — an operation from which every right feeling person shrinks, but 
an operation which should never be abolished until the offenses cease 
which make punishment proper. Proper punishment is not cruelty; 
taking far-reaching consequences into account, it may be the bitterest 
cruelty to withhold it." — Dr. Hewett. 

Third Week.— 1. The subject of corporal punishment a debata- 
ble field. 2. Extremists pro and con. 3. What is agreed upon by 
all at the outset. 4. Great dissimilarity in the home training of 
children, as well as in temperament and disposition. 5. Two 
implied propositions which Horace Mann does not admit. 6. 
What may be in the future, still liable to exceptions. 7. Divi- 
sions in the community, and their influence on the school. 8. The 
effect of failure on the teacher's reputation and on the school. 

9. Corporal punishment sometimes a duty, as well as a right. 

10. The necessity for a resort to corporal punishment sometimes 
exists in the teacher himself. Proof of this. 11. The difference 
in degree of difficulty between establishing and maintaining 
authority. 12. The discretion of silence on the part of the 
teacher as to his intentions. Holding that he has no power to 
punish diminishes the probability of success. Little good comes 
from threatening to punish. 13. Expulsion and its results. 
Horace Mann's views on the subject. 14. The conclusion of the 
argument. The abuse of corporal punishment. 

" The view which sees in the rod the panacea for all the teacher's 
embarrassments is censurable; but equally undesirable is the false 



OUTLINES. 329 

sentimentality which assumes, that the dignity of humanity is affected 
by a blow given to a child." Dr. Rosenkranz. 

Fourth Week.— 1. The disposition of the pupil to be consid- 
ered, and the infliction of bodily pain to be the last resort. 2. 
Self-possession and freedom from anger of the utmost impor- 
tance to the teacher. 3. Should corporal punishment be inflicted 
in the presence of the school? Reasons why it should. 4. The 
good results of a delay of punishment. 5. How corporal pun- 
ishment should not be administered. 6. Punishment should be 
effectual, and should be administered neither for trifling causes 
nor in a trifling manner. 7. Pupils should not become familiar 
with scenes of punishment or with the sight of the instrument 
used. 8. Conclusions on the subject of corporal punishment 
should not be drawn hastily or without the knowledge of experi- 
ence. 9. Sweeping statements of theory should be avoided. 
Opposing resolutions that leave no middle ground. 10. The 
main reliance of the teacher should not be upon appeals to fear 
and force. What means are best employed. 11. When is the 
minimum of punishment the maximum of excellence? 

" 'Don't believe he'll do,' was Mr. Pete Jones' comment to Mr. Means. 
'Don't thrash enough. Boys won't larn 'less you thrash 'em,' says I. 
' Leastways mine won't. Lay it on good,' is what I says to a master. 
' Lay it on good. Don't do no harm. Lickin' and larnin' goes together. 
No lickin', no larnin',' says I. Lickin' and larnin' — lickin' and larnin' is 
the good ole way." — Edward Eggleston. 

SEVENTH MONTH. 

Pages 175-202. 

1. Plan of Work. 2. The Dafs Regime. 3. Reviews and 
Examination. 4. The Teacher's Relations to the Parents of 
Pupils. 

Under the head of school arrangements our author now dis- 
cusses a variety of topics relative to school administration. 
There is a world of wisdom, not to say a Yankee-like shrewdness, 
in his suggestions. Nothing is small, nothing is of little moment, 
if it can conduce to success. Every statement tells its story of 
the actual experience of the writer. 



330 PAGE'S THEORY AND PRACTICE. 

The recess has been, of late, a topic of earnest discussion in 
all the larger gatherings of educators. So also has the exami- 
nation. These matters continue to receive a large share of atten- 
tion in the educational world, and not infrequently are the 
themes of spirited canvass in school elections and appoint- 
ments. Their discussion in these pages is as opportune as 
though the work were written but yesterday. 

First Week.— 1. The opening of school a critical moment for 
the teacher. Plans should be made beforehand. The result of 
want of forethought. 2. The teacher should become acquainted 
with the district in advance, in order to consult with the officers 
and to meet the parents. 3. Cautions to be observed in visita- 
tion. Things not to be encouraged. Whom he should not neglect 
to visit ? 4. Valuable suggestions of Abbott as to the first inter- 
view with pupils in the school. 

Second Week. — 1. The evils of working without a plan. 2. A 
scheme of recitations and study. (In this. Page seems to antici- 
pate the very important matter of '' grading" the district 
schools — a work now happily accomplished in many States.) 
3. The necessity for punctuality. 4. In the scheme of study, 
one branch may be omitted to be studied at home. 5. Instruc- 
tion in drawing. Methods. A suggestion as to original teach- 
ing. 6. Alternation of studies as a remedy against too short 
recitations. 7. Changes of plan should be made slowly and 
carefully. 8. Arrangements for reviews and for oratorical exer- 
cises. 9. Interruptions, and how they may be anticipated and 
avoided. 10. How frequent should be the recesses? 11. What 
should be their duration ? How may the time be employed advan- 
tageously by the teacher. 12. The middle of the session is not 
the proper time for recess. The best time and reasons for the 
choice. 13. Is it advisable that all pupils leave the room ? 14. 
More frequent rests or recesses for the younger pupils. 15. The 
effects of a poorly learned lesson. 16. Slow progress at first 
better than attempts to secure too much. 17. A careful and 
judicious assignment of work necessary. 

For suggestions concerning the first day's work, for a discus- 



OUTLINES. 331 

sion of plans of organization and of various means of improve- 
ment in the work of country schools, as well as for much other 
valuable information, the teacher is referred to Circular of Infor- 
mation No. 6, 1884, of the Bureau of Education. 

''No person not familiar with the practice can have any idea of the 
extraordinary rapidity with which children learn to draw and design, 
when tliey are confined to simple outline patterns for decorative work, 
under the stimulus of invention. It is because there is no shading 
'effects" or 'picturesque,' mingled with their drawing to bewilder their 
brains, that they advance so quickly. As a rule, with very rare excep- 
tions, or in ray experience with almost none, the child from twelve to 
fourteen years of age, who can draw a clean, light, free-hand line, can be 
taught in a few weeks — at the utmost in a few months — to design beau- 
tiful original patterns." — 673a7-7es G. Leland. 

" If there is anything in the moral argument against recess, it holds 
with stronger force against association at noon, and in coming and 
going to and from school. But it may be inquired, ought this hmited 
association to be prevented? Is not the school valuable in this very 
feature that it brings together young people under such limitations and 
restraints as to permit and encourage reaction against evil influences? 
But even were the influence of the recess an immoral and dan- 
gerous one, stiU there would be no choice in the matter, for the physio- 
logical reasons for its existence are imperative and final." — Z>r. Wm. T. 
Harris. 

Third Week. — 1. The uses of reviews; periodic and general 
reviews. 2. The good results of public examinations; are they 
overbalanced by attendant evils. 3. They are not criteria of 
faithfulness nor of success of teachers. How the public may be 
misled by them. 4. They do not indicate accurately the profi- 
ciency of pupils; a proof of this. 5. They present great tempta- 
tions to dishonesty. 6. Examinations of a proper kind are 
desirable and useful. What is the true object of examinations? 

7. Things that are essential to the honesty of examinations. 

8. Page would reform the examinations and restrict them to 
their true purpose, rather than discard them altogether. 9. They 
should not be used as a temporary stimulant; to give promi- 
nence to a lesser motive is to obscure the greater. 

" That the importance commonly attached to examinations is a mis- 
take, is a conviction slowly making itself felt among a large number of 



332 PAGE'S THEORY AND PRACTICE. 

teachers. That they are not, and cannot be to any great extent, a means 
of estimating mind growth, is clear; and certainly the formation of right 
habits of thinking and acting is not the least result for which the teacher 
labors. On the other hand, the diverse tendencies of individual minds, 
faulty recitation work, the relatively small amount of written work done 
in our schools, the periodicity of examinations where such practice exists, 
and faulty questioning — one and all — are active agents in lessening the 
value commonly ascribed to examinations as measures of intellectual 
attainments; and to determine either the class standing or the promo- 
tion by them alone, is certainly an injustice to pupils." — Mar^arei 
Lawrence. 

Fourth Week. — 1. Important qualifications of ministers and 
teachers, which are apt to be overlooked. 2. Etiquette should 
not stand in the way of intercourse with parents. 3. Inquiry as 
to the plans and purposes of the teacher should not be discour- 
aged, but rather invited. 4. Parents should be encouraged to 
visit the school. A danger to be avoided. 5. Disingenuousness 
in reporting progress and conduct bi pupils is impolitic as well 
as wrong. 6. A didactic manner toward the community an 
infirmity incident to teachers. 7. "Out-door work," so fre- 
quently despised, really of great value in enhancing success, 

"Teachers can easily interest their pupils in adorning the school 
grounds. With proper arrangements as to the selection and procuring 
of trees, vines or shrubs. Arbor Day may accomplish wonders. Many 
hands will make work merry, as well as light. Such a holiday will be an 
attractive occasion of social enjoyment and improvement. The parents 
should be persuaded to approve and patronize the plan. It tends to 
fraternize the people of a district when they thus meet on common 
grounds and young and old work together for a common object, where 
all differences of rank or sect or party are forgotten." — Dr. Northrup. 

EIGHTH MONTH. 

Pages 203-228. 

1. Care of Health. 2. Professional Considerations. 3. Means ot 
Self-Culture. 4. Associations. 
First Week, —1. The teacher's work renders him peculiarly- 
liable to ill-health and depression of spirits. 2. This liability 
may be resisted, if anticipated and properly met. 3. Precautions 
hitherto unnecessary become imperative when the teacher enters 



OUTLINES. 333 

upon his work. 4. The need of exercise. The case of Hitchcock. 
Walking, driving, rowing. 5. Early rising. Air and light. Bath- 
ing. Sleep. 6. Proper food. Time of eating. Drink. 7. The 
importance of dress. The golden rule of health. Cheerfulness 
an attendant of health. The oppression of loneliness to be 
avoided. 8. Music, and its influence. 9. A special caution. 

Second Week. — 1. A peculiarity of the teacher's profession. 
Two great evils which strengthen each other. 2. The desire of 
philanthropists to elevate the profession. Means proposed to 
this end. Division of sentiment in Page's time. 3. A mutual 
evil. The improvement of work and wages must progress 
together. 4. The teacher's duty to the profession. 

Third Week. — 1. Self-improvement especially the duty of the 
teacher. 2. Why the first school is the best, in the case of msiwy 
teachers. The peculiar temptation to neglect of personal improve- 
ment. 3. The cares of school should be dismissed with the school. 
A judicious division of time. 4. Improvement brings its own 
reward. 

" The remarkable success of the Chautauqua course of home reading 
and study has encouraged effort in the direction of special courses of 
reading adapted to the peculiar needs of the teacher. While this home 
study never can be to the individual what personal contact with the live 
teacher is, still much useful knowledge and inspiration as well may come 
through carefully selected reading. ... It need not be replied that 
some teachers have neither money nor leisure to pursue a course of read- 
ing which shall the better fit them for their work. It must be, as it has 
ever been, that present sacrifice must be made for future good. There 
ought to be years of preparation in hope of doing better work and 
of receiving better compensation. All over the world, uotably in our 
own country, there is an intellectual awakening. People are thinking, 
investigating, getting abreast of the age. Teachers must not be left 
behind. The times demand broader culture, more exact training, and a 
higher manliness." — Emma M. McRae. 

Fourth Week. — 1. The value of a course of professional read- 
ing. 2. The value of a journal. 3. Teachers should aid one 
another. Visitation of other schools. Monthly meetings of the 
teachers of a town (township). The township institute antici- 
pated. 4. Teachers as contributors to the press. 5. Errors in 



334 PAGE'S THEORY AND PRACTICE, 

the way of institutes. The social advantage of institutes. Pro- 
fessional advantages. 6. A caution relative to institutes. The 
extraordinary not to be sought after. 7. Individuality should 
not be destroyed by servile copying. 

NINTH MONTH. 

Pages 229-311. 

First Week. — 1. Mutual duties of parents and teachers. 2. 
The importance of teaching as a profession. 3. A greater 
appreciation of the schools by parents. 4. More frequent visita- 
tion of the schools needed. 

Second Week. — 1. Prejudice to be avoided. 2. Pupils not to 
direct their own course of study. 3. Unnecessary apologies. 4. 
Comparisons are odious. 5. Unkind remarks to be avoided. 
6. The Bible not a fit instrument for punishment. 7. Teachers 
of one idea. The oral-training hobby of 1829-31. 8. Partiality 
for certain studies objectionable. 

Third Week. — 1. Friendship of teacher for pupils. 2. Good 
order in the schoolhouse. 3. Correction in general exercises. 

4. A pleasant spirit in the school. 5. The art of apt illustration. 
6. Special occasions for moral teachings. 

Fourth Week. — 1. Opportunities for intellectual and moral 
growth. 2. Professional advancement. 3. The fruits of the 
teacher's labor manifest. 4. Appreciation of the teacher's work. 

5. The legal status of the teacher. 



lE'DEX. 



Abbott, Jacob, 128, 178, 219. 

Abbott, J. S. C, 325, 328. 

Accuracy, 104, 261, 316. 

Acquisition, 124. 

Addison, 67. 

Advancement, 122. 

Affection, 132, 172, 280. 

Agnew, Professor, 279. 

Aid, mutual, 221. 

Air, 207, 314. 

Albany Normal School, 15, 17, 312. 

Algebra, 59. 

Alphabet, 53. 

Alternations, 184. 

Ambition, 110. 

Analysis, 53. 

Anger, 127, 167. 

Animation, 100. 

Answers, 87, 97. 

Approbation, 121, 132. 

Aptness, 74, 94. 

Acquisition, 124. 

Arbor Day, 314. 

Aristocracy, 131, 178, 247. 

Aristotle, 281. 

Arithmetic, 57, 58, 181, 184, 314, 317. 

Arnold, Matthew, 281. 

Arnold, Thomas, 218. 

Arrangement of schools, 175-197. 

Art of teaching, 4, 264, 278. 

Ascham, Roger, 281. 

Assigning lessons, 190. 

Assistant, 183. 

Assumption, 128, 129. 



Astronomy, 64, 220, 256. 
Attainments, 52, 53, 214. 
Attendance, regularity of, 239. 
Attention, 83, 94, 100. 
Auburn prison, 41, 42, 313. 
Authority, 147, 159, 163. 

Baby-talk, 255. 

Bacon, Francis, 214. 

Bain, Alexander, 219. 

Bartlett pear, 26. 

Bathing, 46. 

Bible, 40, 41, 123, 141, 152, 166, 254, 

270. 
Blackguardism, 150. 
Black marks, 142. 
Blind, 125. 
Body, 280. 

Bodily punishment, 146, 148, 158. 
Book-keeping, 61, 318. 
Books, 35, 101, 218, 219, 238. 
Boone, 218. 
Botany, 220, 256. 
Branch of study, 257. 
Brougham, Lord, 69, 219, 284. 
Business in school hours, 250, 251. 

Calling of the teacher, 212-228, 279, 

280. 
Care of health, 203-211, 316, 332. 
Care of school-room, 258. 
Carlyle, Thomas, 93, 263. 
Catholicity, 39. 
Chadbourne, Dr., 324. 

(335) 



336 



INDEX. 



Chagrin, 27, 155, 253, 263. 
Character, 50, 71, 122, 247, 261. 
Chastisement, 158, 167. 
Cheerfulness, 210, 262, 263. 
Chemistry, 59, 220, 256. 
Child, the, 69, 72, 75, 110, 124, 131, 

160, 175, 248. 
Choice of studies, 248, 249. 
Christianity, 111, 112, 280. 
Civil government, 62. 
Classes, 184. 
Classification, 181, 184. 
Cleanliness, 45, 46, 207. 
Clinton, DeWitt, 15. 
Clock, 183. 
Clothing, 238. 
Coarseness, 47, 100, 151. 
Colburn's Mental Arithmetic, 57. 
Comenius, S. S. Laurie's, 218. 
Commonplace-book, 98, 220. 
Comparisons, invidious, 252, 253. 
Compayre, 218. 
Competitors, 117. 

Complaints against candidates, 305. 
Composition, 32, 185, 220, 224. 
Concert recitations, 104, 255. 
Conducting recitations, 94-106, 318. 
Confession, 262. 
Confidence, 136, 154. 
Confinement, 157, 190. 
Confucius, 281. 

Confusion illustrated, 186, 188. 
Conscience, 36, 37, 70, 122, 123, 138. 
Consciousness of success, 277, 279. 
Contracts, 297. 
Convicts, appearance of, 41. 
Corn, an object lesson, 83-87. 
Corporal punishment, 158, 168, 311, 

328. 
Countenance, 262. 
Course of study, 220. 
Courtesy, 47, 135, 316. 
Cousin, Victor, 69, 219, 321. 



Cramming, 35, 191, 195. 
Credits, 142. 
Crime, 42. 
Cruelty, 152. 
Culture, 64, 155, 215. 
Curiosity, 124, 125. 
Cuvier, 256. 

Cyclopedia of Education, Kiddle and 
Schem's, 219. 

Day-dreams of a Schoolmaster, 

Thompson's, 219. 
Deaf, 125. 

Decimal notation, 103. 
Decision, 132. 
Declamation, 185. 
Defining, 31. 
DeGarmo, 219. 
Delay in punishment, 168. 
Deliberation, 169. 
Description, 32. 
Desires, 121, 122-126. 
Desks, 259. 

Development, 69, 70, 280. 
Dewey, 219. 

Dickens, Charles, 323, 324. 
Diet, 204, 207. 

Direction of pupil's study, 248. 
Disciplinary punishment, 169. 
Discipline, 70, 143, 279. 
Discovery, 81, 90, 126. 
Discretion, 138. 
Dismissal of teacher, 303. 
Dismissing, 49, 272. 
Disposition to dictate, 233. 
District, factions in, 162, 177. 
Divinity, 23. 
Doing, 66, 83. 

Do right, 122, 137, 155, 214. 
Drawing, 62, 183, 318. 
Drawing-out process, 77. 
Dress, 46, 204, 209, 247. 
Drink, 209. 



INDEX. 



337 



Driving, 206. 
Dullness, 253. 
Duty, 214, 235, 236. 

Ear, 125, 149. 

Education, Spencer's, 219. 

Educational library, 219. 

Educational millennium, 213. 

Education as a Science, Bain's, 219. 

Effort, 117, 118, 119. 

Eggleston, Dr., 327, 329. 

Elementary science, 53. 

Elements of education, 249. 

Elm, 88. 

Emerson, George B., 67, 69. 

Emile, Kosseau's, 219. 

Employment, 136, 212, 296. 

Emulation, 108, 110. 

Encouragements, 214, 226. 

Ends, 74, 204. 

English grammar, 32, 33, 58, 317. 

Enthusiasm, 94, 96, 98. 

Envy, 110, 112, 114, 252. 

Epping, 11. 

Errors, 71, 177, 178, 179, 228. 

Evasion, 103. 

Examinations, 194, 196. 

Example, 36, 38, 48, 120, 215. 

Excitement, 29, 100, 107, 125, 126. 

Exciting interest in study, 107-126. 

Exclusiveness, 222. 

Excuses from parents, 251. 

Exemplary punishment, 169. 

Exercise, bodily, 204. 

Exhibitions, 195, 196, 227. 

Expedients, 230. 

Expenses, 276. 

Experience, 98, 170, 228! 

Experiments, 108, 113, 276. 

Explanations, 102, 200. 

Expulsion, 165. 

Extraordinary, 227. 

Eye, 125. 

T P.— 22 



Facts, 227. 

Failure, 191, 223. 

Faith, 270. 

False standard, 232. 

Family, 210. 

Fat, 209. 

Favorite branch, 257. 

Fear, 147, 268. 

Feet, 210. 

Few, the, 114, 115. 

Firmness, 132. 

First day, 175, 176, 178. 

First impressions, 134, 135, 175, 179, 

247. 
Fitch, J. G., 219. 
Fitness, grades of, 74, 94, 95. 
Flowerless plants, 323. 
Food, 208. 
Force, 146, 163, 164. 
Forgiving spirit, 244. 
Fox, Mr., 70. 
Francke, A. H., 281. 
Franklin, Dr., 136, 251. 
Frankness, 201, 261. 
Friends, personal, 178, 179, 210, 226, 

258. 
Friendship, 222, 223. 
Froebel, 218, 219, 321. 
Frowns, 253. 
Fruit, 209. 

Gardening, 205. 

Genius, 118. 

Geography, 31, 55, 57, 181, 314. 

Geology, 64, 220. 

Geometry, 59. 

Gill, 218. 

Gifts, 95, 119. 

God, 21, 24, 36, 38, 39, 43, 123, 269, 
273; approval of, 24, 38, 122, 123, 
228, 269, 281, 282; kingdom of, 
110, 128, 280; our protector, 269, 
270, 271 ; punishment from, 148, 



338 



INDEX. 



God — Continued. 

149; rewards, 119, 123, 269, 271; 

the teacher's need of, 41, 44 ; wisdom 

of, 125, 126, 147, 256, 269. 
Goldsmith, Oliver, 151. 
Gould, Hannah F., 12. 
Government, 127-174, 179, 224. 
Grammar, 32, 33, 58, 181, 314. 
Great teacher, the, 283. 
Greek, 55, 317. 
Greenwood, 219. 
Growth, 124, 215-217, 277, 278. 

Habits, mechanical, 35, 45-51, 

100. 
Hailman, W. N., 218, 219. 
Hall, S. K., 102. 
Hampton Academy, 11. 
Harris, Dr., 331. 
Head, 149, 169. 

Health, bodily, 29, 60, 203-211. 
Heaven, 280, 283, 285. 
Helping pupils, 80. 
Hewett, Dr., 319, 328. 
Higher branches, 257. 
Hissing, 154. 

History, 32, 56, 77, 78, 314. 
Hitchcock, President, 205. 
" Hobbies " in teaching, 254-257. 
" Holding a nail," 153. 
Home, 210, 282. 
Honesty, 41, 200, 201, 227. 
Honor, 260. 
Hope, 28. 

Household education, 219. 
Howard, K. S., 14, 142. 
Humiliation, 157, 260. 
Hypocrisy, 158, 195-196, 201, 227, 

252, 260. 

Ideal, 66-69, 72. 
Ideas, 30, 124. 
Ignorance, 23. 



Illustrations, 25, 41, 55, 66, 77, 82, 
102, 128, 133, 138, 144, 145, 150, 
154, 179, 222, 251, 265. 

Imitation, 227, 228. 

Imortality, 280. 

Impartiality, 131. 

Impatience, 140, 150, 214. 

Impression, 134, 179, 273. 

Improvement, 98, 176, 180, 215-221, 
278, 285. 

Incentives, 108, 121, 126, 325. 

Indifference, 82, 97, 114, 190. 

Inductions, 170. 

Industry, 41, 143, 222. 

Information, 215. 

Injustice, 129, 149, 247. 

In loco parentis, 147, 309, 328. 

Inquiry, 85, 177, 200. 

Institutes, teachers', 224, 225. 

Instruction, 142, 172. 

Instrument, 169. 

Intellectual growth, 276. 

Intellectual philosophy, 61. 

Interest, 107, 126. 

Intermission, 189. 

Interruptions, 185. 

Intuition, 74, 95. 

Jokes, 150. 

Journal of Education, Barnard's, 18, 

22. 
Judges, 116, 117, 247. 
Judgment, 247. 
Jug, mind not a, 76. 
Justice, 36, 117, 118, 127, 131, 136, 138. 

Kiddle, 219. 

Knowing, 66, 67, 68. 

Knowledge, 41, 70, 124, 126, 214, 215, 

279. 
Krusi, 218. 

Lack of appreciation, 232. 



INDEX. 



339 



Lalor, 219. 

Lancaster, 187. 

Landon, 219. 

Language, 47, 48, 99, 102, 124. 

Latin, 55, 317. 

Laughing, 151, 154. 

Laurie, Simon S., 219. 

Lawrence, Margaret, 332. 

Laws, 137, 138, 296. 

Laws of health, 60, 61. 

Lawyer, 23. 

Leading questions,77, 93. 

Lectures, 219, 256. 

Legal rights, 296-311. 

Leland, Charles G., 331. 

Lessons, 183, 190. 

Letters, silent, 53. 

Levity, 128. 

Library, teacher's, 218, 219. 

License to teach, 296. 

Life of David P. Page, 11-19. 

Life, practical, 122. 

Light, 207. 

Limitation of topics taught, 250. 

Limitations and suggestions on cor- 
poral punishment, 167. 

Literary qualifications of the teacher, 
52-65. 

Literature, 56, 219. 

Living by their wits, 276. 

Locke, John, 69, 219, 320. 

Logic, 61. . 

Love, 128, 132, 135, 154, 172, 258, 
277. 

Luther, Martin, 140. 

Lyon, Mary, 218. 

McRae, Emma M., 333. 
Man, an instrument, 115. 
Mann, Horace, 14, 15, 52, 69, 100, 
124, 160, 218, 219, 317, 319, 321. 
Manners, 45, 48, 100, 128, 260. 
Many, the, 114, 117, 248. 



Map-drawing, 55. 
Maps, 31. 

Martineau, Miss, 219. 
Mathematics, 59, 193, 220. 
Mather, Cotton, 13. 
Meanness, 177, 247, 251, 252. 
Means, 69, 70, 74, 117, 118, 134-146, 

224, 225, 274, 279. 
Meeting of teachers, 223, 224. 
Memory, 34, 35, 70, 71, 97, 115, 119, 

220. 
Mental arithmetic, 31, 57, 181. 
Methods, 74-93, 223, 257, 265. 
Milton, John, 69, 281, 319, 320. 
Mind, 21, 37, 38, 68, 69, 72, 76, 95, 

124, 125, 148, 279. 
Minimum of punishment, 172. 
Miscellaneous suggestions, 247-274. 
Misjudgment, 71, 74, 117, 176. 
Models, use of, 185, 227. 
Modes of teaching, 74-93. 
Modesty, 202, 247. 
Morality, 27, 36, 37, 68-70, 120, 124, 

260, 267, 277. 
Moral philosophy, 61. 
Moral suasion, 159. 
Moroseness, 128. 
Mothers first, 200, 281, 282. 
Motives, 21, 22, 68, 107, 115, 119, 

123, 124, 132, 147, 154, 172, 196, 

278, 279. 
Music, 63, 140, 318. 
Mutual aid, 221. 
Mutual duties, 229-246, 334. 

Nails, 46. 
Napoleon, 110. 

Natural philosophy, 59, 194, 264. 
Neatness, 45, 210, 258, 316. 
Neglected pear tree, 25-28. 
Newbury, 12, 13. 

Newburyport, 12, 13, 14, 15, 18, 312, 
313. 



340 



INDEX. 



Nibbling, mental, 184. 
Northrup, Dr., 332. 
Number, 31. 
Nurslings, 75. 

Obedience, 124, 137, 258. 

Objections to prizes, 114-120. 

Object lessons, 83. 

Obligation, 90, 245. 

Observation, 35, 90, 91. 

Olmstead, Professor, 261. 

Oral mania, 255. 

Oral teaching, 75, 90, 255, 256. 

Orcutt, Hiram, 223, 326. 

Order, 47, 127, 134, 144, 145, 258, 272. 

Order of study, 30, 34, 95. 

Organization, 177. 

Orthography, 53, 316. 

Outline of reading, 212-234. 

Page, David Perkins, 11-19, 312, 313. 

Painter, 218. 

Parents, 28, 36, 91, 141, 147, 160, 162, 

178, 198, 229, 232, 253, 281. 
Partiality, 131, 257. 
Passion, 127, 167, 263. 
Patience, 185, 253, 262. 
Paul, the apostle, 284. 
Pay, 52, 212, 275, 284. 
Payne, Joseph, 219, 319, 321. 
Pear tree, 25, 314. 
Peevishness, 128. 
Perfect manhood, 280. 
Personal acquaintance, 234. 
Personal friends, 178, 179, 210, 226, 

258. 
Personal habits of the teacher, 45-51. 
Pestalozzi, 18, 218, 219, 281, 320, 322. 
Phelps, W. J., 16. 
Philosophy, 59, 74. 
Physician, 22, 23, 108, 249. 
Physics, 59, 194, 264. 
Physiology, 33, 60. 



Plagiarism, 260. 

Plan, 137, 175, 179, 199, 220, 329. 

Plants, 87, 323. 

Plato, 281. 

Pleasure, 124, 125. 

Plum Island, 12, 19. 

Politeness, 47, 48. 

Potter, Dr., 69, 140. 

Pouring-in process, 75, 93, 256. 

Practice, 37, 47, 220, 225. 

Precept, 36, 47, 315. 

Precocity, 29. 

Predecessor, 177, 252. 

Preface, author's, 3. 

Preface, editor's, 5, 6. 

Prejudice, 247. 

Preparation, 22, 23, 31, 95, 96. 

Press, the, 224. 

Principle, application of, 58, 95, 

170. 
Principle, moral, 36, 38, 110, 111, 134, 

167. 
Privileges, loss of, 156. 
Prizes, 112-120, 325. 
Profanity, 47. 
Profession, the teacher's, 22, 52, 67, 

212, 230, 244, 280. 
Professional feeling, 226. 
Professional reading, 207, 217, 218, 

219. 
Proficiency, 194. 
Programme of recitation and study, 

182. 
Promptness, 104. 
Propagation, 87, 90. 
Proper temperature, 315. 
Proportion, 100. 
Pruning, 26. 
Psychology, 95, 96. 
Public examinations, 194-197. 
Public opinion, 168-172, 214. 
Punctuality, 49, 178, 216, 316. 
Punctuation, 317. 



INDEX. 



341 



Punishment, 146, 327. 
Pupils, 129, 195, 281. 

Quacks, 60, 213. 
Qualifications, 52-65, 69, 176. 
Questioning, 84-90, 97. 
Questions, 35, 77, 99. 
Quick, R. H., 218. 

Eatio, 100. 

Reading, 30, 54, 181, 217, 221. 

Reading circles, 65, 312. 

Reasons, 57, 95. 

Recess, 188. 

Recipient, passive, 75, 88, 89, 90. 

Reciprocal duties, 236. 

Recitations, 34, 35, 94-106, 115, 181, 

183. 
Recreation, 216, 217. 
Reformation, 260. 
Register of credits, 142. 
Regulations respecting attendance, 

307; studies, 306. 
Religion, 122, 315. 
Religious training, 38, 269. 
Remembrance of pupils, 281. 
Reproof, 156, 168, 260. 
Resolutions, 171, 225. 
Respect, 135, 261. 
Responsibility, 21, 28, 29, 36, 37, 38, 

61, 116, 175, 276, 310. 
Restraint, 157. 
Revenge, 147. 
Reviews, 185, 193, 331. 
Rewards, 113, 118, 119, 120, 212, 

275-285. 
Rhetoric, 61. 
Ridicule, 153. 
Riding, horseback, 205. 
Righteousness, 122. 
Right modes of teaching, 74-93, 322. 
Right to punish, 148. 
Right views of education, 66-73, 316. 



Rights of property, 259. 

Rivalry, 114. 

Rod, the, 158, 164, 170. 

Roguery, 179. 

Rosenkranz, 219, 329. 

Rousseau, 219, 320. 

Routine, 101. 

Rowing, 206. 

Rules, 58, 137. 

Rules and regulations, 305. 

Sawing wood, 206. 

Schem, A. J., 219. 

Scholars, 36, 37, 49, 71, 115, 181. 

Scholarship, 71, 191. 

School hygiene, 314. 

School Law Decisions, Smith's, 296- 

311. 
Schoolmaster, the, 286. 
School officers, 213. 
School-room, 29, 36, 185, 216, 258. 
Science, 58, 59, 96, 108, 137, 250. 
Scientific baby-talk, 255. 
Scolding, 150, 170. 
Seeds, 87-89. 

Self-control, 261-264, 268, 277. 
Self-culture, 205, 316. 
Self-government, 127, 128, 145, 167, 

253, 262, 326. 
Self-improvement, 64, 92, 99, 215- 

221, 278. 
Selfishness, 111, 130, 221, 222. 
Self-reliance, 81, 98, 104, 105, 130. 
Self-righteousness, 155, 228, 261. 
Seneca, 281. 
Sewell, Samuel, 19. 
Shame, 147, 154, 155. 
Silence, 145, 146. 
Simultaneous recitation, 104. 
Sincerity, 37. 
Singing, 273. 

"Sitting on nothing,"- 153. 
"Sitting on worse than nothing," 153. 



342 



INDEX. 



Skating, 206. 

Sketch, biographical, 11-19. 

Skimming, 190, 191. 

Sleep, 204, 207, 217, 264. 

Smiles, 120, 151, 263, 282. 

Smith, Lyndon A., 296. 

Snappishness, 128. 

Society, 210, 247. 

Socrates, 281, 322. 

Solicitude, 27. 

Soimds, 53. 

Special preparation, 191. 

Spelling, 31, 181. 

Spencer, Herbert, 219, 321. 

Spirit of the teacher, 21-24, 41, 50, 

313. 
Stagnation, 216, 220. 
Stimulants, 125, 126. 
Studies, 248. 
Study, 30, 34, 35, 50, 64, 92, 97, 101, 

107-126, 216, 220. 
Subject, order of, 35, 95, 96, 101. 
Substitutes, 298. 
Success, 118. 

Suggestions, miscellaneous, 247-274. 
Sully, 219. 
Sums, 99. 

Supposed faults, 241. 
Surveying, 59. 
Suspension of pupils, 309. 
Suspicion, 135, 233. 
Symmetry, 280. 
System, 47, 175, 185, 188, 216, 220, 

312. 

Talent, 20, 95, 195, 212. 

Talk, 225. 

Tardiness, 308. 

Teacher, accomplished, 22, 53, 67, 

122, 134, 263. 
Teacher, The, 178. 
Teachers' associations, 224. 
Teachers' meeting, 223. 



Teaching, art of, 21, 67, 74, 94, 130, 

215, 247. 
Teeth, 46. 

Tests, 30, 96, 97, 98, 194-197. 
Text-book, 35. 
Theory, 48. 

Theory and practice of teaching, 52. 
Thinking, 115, 193, 266. 
Thompson, I^Arcy W., 219. 
Thoroughness, 249-250. 
Thought, 91, 95, 156, 194, 221. 
Threatening, 139, 150, 164. 
Thring, E., 219. 
Thunderstorm, its lessons, 268. 
Time, 216. 
Tobacco, 47. 
Topics, 102. 

Training, 29, 30, 38, 123. 
Trigonometry, 59. 
True politeness, 48. 
Truth, 35, 37, 171. 
Tyranny, 130. 

Uniformity, 131. 
Unusual occurrences, 276. 
Usefulness, 122, 123, 279. 

Vandalism, 259, 260. 

Ventilation, 315. 

Vices, inexcusable, 37, 38, 212, 213. 

Victims of kindness, 76. 

Victory, 264. 

Views of education, 66-73. 

Views of government, 130-132. 

Views of the whole, 193. 

Visitation, mutual, 222, 223, 227. 

Visits of patrons, 238. 

Visit to patrons, 141. 

Vocal music, 63, 140, 141, 273. 

Vocation of teacher, 277, 279, 280. 

Vulgarity, 47, 151. 

Wages, recovery of, 300, 301. 



INDEX. 



343 



Waking-up process, 82, 91, 92, 140, 

284. 
Walking, 204. 
Want of cooperation, 230. 
Warren, Dr. J. C, 206. 
Way, 34, 35, 80-82. 
Wayland, Dr., 37, 69. 
Webster, Dr., 18, 109, 147. 
Whipping, 158, 170. 
Whitefield, Dr., 12, 19. 
Whittier, James Greenleaf, 12. 
Wisdom, 215, 228. 
Woodward, Dr., 60. 
Word analysis, 55. 
Words, 29, 30, 34. 



Worship in prison, 42, 43. 
Worth, 117-119. 
Wright, Silas, 17. 
Writer, 224. 
Writing, 31, 55, 181. 
Written arithmetic, 32, 58. 
Wyse, 219. 

Young children, 74, 190. 
Young, Col., 60. 
Young, Dr., 222. 
Youth, the dignity of, 24. 

Zoology, 256. 

Zoppan, Christopher, 13. 



